Easter Island journeys

islands — By Bob Riel on May 11, 2006 at 1:37 pm

There is something both enchanting and sad about the ruins of lost cultures and cities. Macchu Picchu in Peru, the temples of Angkor in Cambodia, the city of Ephesus in Turkey. But even as we struggle to understand how these societies decayed with such finality after reaching such heights of achievement, it’s still hard not to marvel at these monuments of past civilizations during our travels.

Edward Albee is best known as a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, but even he cannot escape this fascination that most of have with ancient cultures. In a recent issue of the NY Times, he wrote about a long-awaited journey that he took to Easter Island about the time of his 78th birthday. It’s an interesting account of his trip. He concludes:

For many Easter Island will be a once in a lifetime experience – literally and figuratively. But I plan to go back, and more than once. I want to bring special friends with me, people who will appreciate the experience. I want to see the rapture in their eyes as they live with the wonders.