The exorbitant cost of living on Easter Island becomes apparent the moment you step off the plane.
Since the entire island is a national park, instead of going to collect luggage, everyone first queues to purchase entrance tickets. The fee for foreign adults is 54,000 pesos, which is equivalent to 78 dollars.
Due to the fact that most goods are airlifted to the island and its status as a tourist destination, the prices for everyday items and food are astonishingly high. A large bag of Lay's chips costs 12 dollars, while a Snickers bar is priced at 3 dollars. A British traveler told me that her meals here consist of nothing but bread and cheese, and the bread is what she brought from Santiago.
As someone who cannot tolerate the idea of eating bread every day, I simply could not accept that. On this island, surrounded by the sea, the most affordable ingredients are frozen seafood. Preparing seafood pasta and seafood soup has become my daily routine, and I occasionally dine out to savor the culinary skills of the locals, shaping my everyday life on Easter Island.
