Easter - Island Style

When the shrill ring of the alarm clock woke me at 5:00 a.m. this morning I was questioning the soundness of the decision made earlier in the week.  You see we have established an Easter tradition since moving to the island.  Each spring we attend the sunrise service on the beach sponsored by local churches and the Marriott hotel.  We haven't missed a year that I can remember and we always go with our good friends and neighbors D & S.  This year we all agreed to put a new spin on our well established tradition....we attended by boat.

Going by sea meant we had to leave an hour earlier than normal.  Did you know that it is really dark at 5:30 a.m.?  Well it is. We were hoping to catch a  little daylight before leaving the lights from the condos behind, making it easier to avoid those pesky channel markers.



This is what it looked like by the time we anchored in front of the Marriott.  Upon arrival we were sitting approximately 100 yards off shore virtually alone.  But by the time the service started we were among a friendly crowd of 25 - 30 boats.



I realize it's hard to tell from the photo but the crowd on the beach was estimated to be around 5,000.  No, that's not a type-o.  The average attendance for Marco's sunrise service on the beach is anywhere from 5 - 6 thousand.  Honest.



The Captain (who really needs a haircut) is not going to be happy when he sees this one.  But that's okay, he'll get over it.  He always does.



Breakfast was served in short order and we all settled in to enjoy the service.



As the sun rose I couldn't help but notice the beautiful light reflecting off of our nearest neighbor.



As Easter's go this one was a pretty good one.



It was also the 56th wedding anniversary for our friends.  Congratulations D & S and thanks for sharing your day with us.



I'd say the morning was just about perfect.

Happy Easter.