Volume 39 Number 3 | June 2025
Heather Parks, MS, MLS(ASCP)CM, ASCLS Today Volunteer Contributor
Sometimes dreams do come true! It all started when my family and I were doing a fun “geography study” about Chile. I visited Chile in 2008 as a backpacker. The country fascinated me, so I wanted to learn more. During our Chile study, I read Geronimo Stilton: The Treasure of Easter Island. Geronimo Stilton is a kids’ series in which Geronimo, a mouse, gets roped into wacky adventures. From this book, I became increasingly interested in Easter Island and determined to visit it.
Last spring, I traveled to Chile, then took the five-hour flight to Easter Island. In Spanish, it’s called Isla Pascua. Rapa Nui is its native name. Its capital is the small (and only) town of Hanga Roa. Rapa Nui is famous for its mysterious Moai: large statues with big heads carved from volcanic rock. The island is officially governed by Chile but retains its Polynesian culture. Of course, I wanted to see the Moai, volcanoes, ocean, and wild horses. But I couldn’t stop thinking about the hospital lab. Who worked there? Could I visit them? I imagined the lab as very small, and maybe I couldn’t communicate in the Rapa Nui language (they speak Rapa Nui and Spanish).
Determined, I gathered small souvenirs from my home city of San Antonio, Texas. I threw in a copy of ASCLS Today, some conference freebies, and a note of thanks and appreciation for their work helping the people of Rapa Nui. I emailed Marcela at La Casa del Kori Hostal (my dorm-style backpacker accommodation) about the hospital lab. She said I could go to the information desk and ask for Gloria, who would show me the hospital.
I traveled light, with a backpack. I asked Marcela about mosquitoes because I read that the dengue virus is a risk there and that I should bring mosquito netting. She said there weren’t many mosquitoes. And she was right, I didn’t encounter any—just cute dogs, chickens, and wild horses.
My week on Easter Island was wonderful. It was a dream come true. I rented a small car and circled the island, seeing the Moai, volcanoes, and the ocean on a quiet, drizzly day. On other days, I took group tours to the archeological sites. I met locals and travelers from around the world.
Then I got the bad news from home: my cat died. While I mourned in the breezy, round library, a librarian offered me a free book. I chose El Gato, Mog (The Cat, Mog). I thought maybe I would not visit the lab after all. But on my last beautiful sunny morning there, I went to the Hanga Roa Hospital. The lady I was supposed to ask for was not there, but I told someone at the registration desk (I speak some Spanish) that I had a gift for the lab. A nice lady walked me to the lab, where I introduced myself at the drop-off window.
The manager was summoned, and I was in! It turned out they were thrilled to have a visitor. Pablo, the manager, showed me around the lab. I saw familiar instruments and equipment. I was impressed by their large molecular testing section. Testing patients for dengue and other mosquito-borne viruses was a high priority. Pablo told me they rely on service engineers, supplies, and blood products to be flown in from the mainland. Luckily, there is a daily flight from Santiago. The lab and hospital were bright and cheerful. It looked like a delightful place to work. My “silly” dream came true: I visited the lab on Easter Island! And the best part is, I keep in touch with them.
I hope to visit more labs as I travel, or even nearby labs—just to drop by with a token of gratitude. So, if like me, you have a silly idea to visit labs in faraway places, try it! I’m so glad I did.
Heather Parks is a Medical Laboratory Scientist at University Hospital in San Antonio, Texas.
Last spring author Heather Parks realized a dream to visit Easter Island. Pictured from top: Heather visited a Moai quarry and Tongarik in Rapa Nuii, and she stopped at Hanga Roa Hospital where she met Consuelo and Pablo Ostornol, the lab manager, and toured the hospital lab.