Easter Island was a place I had long dreamed of visiting – not seriously, of course. It was far too far away for someone in Malaysia. It was destined to be one of those dreams you never act upon. I didn’t even know that it had a local name, Rapa Nui.
But I hadn’t reckoned on the rise of online travel platforms, the growth of the budget airline industry, worldwide digital mapping, smartphone translators, and the share economy. And so, at the time in my life when I was ready to flip my mindset upside down, and asked myself, ‘What if I did the places at the bottom of my bucket list, first?’, it was suddenly feasible to really go to Easter Island.
Emboldened by my experience with semi-unplanned travel in Nepal and India, I went with only a loose plan, greatly daring. Releasing the pressure of FOMO, I vowed to be content with whatever that the destination allowed me to see. <
I found Rapa Nui to be an excellent host indeed.
Additional stories published by others:
On Travelmag | The Independent Spirit:
Easter Island: Sculptures by the Sea
Was I the First Malay on Easter Island?
On Written From Travel: Comparing Mountains at Rano Raraku
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