On Saturday, July 11, 2015, I made use of my ever-improving Spanish skills to navigate my way to “United Nations Boulevard” – a twenty minute metro-bus ride from my hostel and from the historic center of Quito, Ecuador. After wandering around aimlessly for several minutes, I finally used my Ecuadorian cell phone to call the phone number on my ticket. Just a few minutes later, I successfully located my tour bus that was parked on the other side of this busy boulevard.
As an adventurer at heart, I could not possibly imagine a trip to Ecuador that did not include a trip to the equator. The bus I was about to board would take me on a seven-hour tour visiting all of the major sites in that area.
This post contains 89 photos telling the story of my visit to the “Mitad Del Mundo” or “Middle of the Earth” or “The Equator”.
As usual, the photos in this post are thumbnail images. Please click on any photo to enlarge it. The thumbnails leave much to be desired as far as colors and resolution – plus the thumbnails clip all of the edges. I use thumbnails for the post itself, because it gives people an opportunity to get a summary glimpse without downloading huge amounts of data for the high-res photos.
CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE TO HIGH RESOLUTION
Doubling Up
My time in Quito was a whirlwind of mixed activities as I simultaneously attempted to play tourist, make ongoing flight plans, and to regroup/recover from the robbery of my computer, wallet, and several miscellaneous items.
By the time Friday evening entered the history books, I had resigned myself to the fact that I wasn’t going to find a suitable computer replacement in Quito, and I had concocted a new plan.
During my scurrying around on Thursday, I had discovered a large, modern computer store near the upper end of United Nations Boulevard. As I checked in with my heart on Friday evening, I decided to squeeze two tasks into a tiny window. I would take the twenty-minute bus ride an hour early, wait for the store to open at 10:00 a.m., purchase an inexpensive android tablet (for email, Facebook, and Skype), and then hurry on foot to my tour-bus stop, which was less than a half mile further down the street.
To my delight, everything went as planned, and when I finally located my tour bus at about 10:45 a.m. I carefully checked to make sure I still had a precious little box (my new tablet) stowed away in my day-pack (one that I unpacked and charged up later that night).
And We’re Off
In this photo, I am sitting on the top level of our double-decker bus, looking down at a huge city park that exists along this part of United Nations Boulevard. The actual “bus office” was a tiny little booth situated alongside this park. That is why I had some difficulty finding it.
We are now driving around Quito, skirting around the park, doing a tiny bit of “city tour” before getting onto the main roads that will take us to the equator area.
I am sitting on the left, about in the middle of the bus. The weather was beautiful this morning (about 11:00 a.m.), and the sun was so nice. Later in the afternoon, they converted the top level into a covered space.
Driving along the foothills of Quito, looking down at a small portion of this capitol city.
… another similar view.
… more glimpses of this section of Quito.
Apartment buildings along the main highway.
And a nice little sports complex.
Passing by some type of government facility.
Beginning to leave the city … a row of cactus plants by the road.
Looking across the valley in this less-populated valley. The climate right here is quite dry.
Passing another large population area.
At about 12:10 p.m. (a little over an hour of driving), we pass by the little town called “Mitad Del Mundo”. It is actually a little tourist city (I don’t think people actually live here) that centers around the equator monuments that were built for the tourists to see.
I heard several rumors that the equator as marked here is actually not accurate. Wikipedia states that the real equator (as measured by GPS) is actually 240 meters (about 262 yards) to the north of what is marked in this little tourist center.
In this photo, we are just passing by on the highway as we first head toward another site.
A photo of the center area of a large “round-about” traffic circle as we continue on our way. If you click to enlarge this photo, you can see the “equator monument” in the distance (at the right center area of the thumbnail image).
In the center of this image, you can barely see that monument. It is a tall obelisk with a world globe on top.
This photo is taken from the same spot, using a full zoom.
I am unclear at the time, but believe that we are headed up somewhere into those mountains.
And we continue to leave the “Mitad Del Mundo” behind as we slightly climb toward the mountains in the distance.
Soon, we turn off the highway and pass this sign – pointing toward our first destination – that of Pululahua (poo-lou-LAW-wah).
And I quickly figure out that we are headed up toward this volcanic peak.
Looking back down into the valley. The “Mitad Del Mundo” is down there in the distance.
We pass by this museum. I begin to wonder if we are going here, but our tour guide says “no”. He recommends that we visit sometime, but that it is not part of the tour.
A front view of the same museum.
As we pull into a parking lot, I snap a photo of this sign. It marks the beginning of a trail that descends down into a volcanic crater/caldera … and apparently, there is a hostel down there where tourists can stay.
A sign marking the “geo-botanical reserve of Pululahua”.
At this point, I still have no idea what we are about to see or do.
I soon learn that we are simply visiting a beautiful view area that overlooks a huge volcanic crater/caldera. This area is now a reserve. There is one small road that climbs over the mountains and down inside (coming in from a different spot) … and the area is farmed by some local people who live in this very limited-access remote area.
The climate here is very different from that of Quito. It is cool, foggy, and humid.
A slightly different view of the same area.
Me, with the crater in the background. It was windy up here.
Looking back at the view-area platform as I return toward the entrance.
I decided to take a photo of our tour itinerary as outlined on a brochure. It indicates that our next destination is the “Intiñan Museum”, and that we should arrive there at about 1:15 p.m. …
We are given about fifteen minutes of free time, so I briefly explore the top of the trail that leads down into the crater below … and on to that hostel.
At just after 1:00 p.m., we arrive at the museum, back down near the “Mitad Del Mundo” area.
In fact, this area is accurately measured by military GPS as actually containing a “true and exact” portion of the real equator line.
As we get off our tour bus, we split into a Spanish group and an English group. The Spanish guide takes the group to visit the inside of this little planetarium. We are told that our English group will visit this at the end of our visit. This never happens … so I did not see the inside. Apparently, it talks about the stars and how they line up at this point on the planet.
The first part of our tour (led by the English-speaking guide) takes us through a few exhibits of amazonian articles, including a large stuffed snake.
And a huge tarantula. I have still never seen a wild one anywhere near as big as this. The body of this one is several inches long. (not counting the legs).
A sign with the name of the museum. It is in English, so you can click-to-enlarge if you want to read what it says.
Looking down into a recreated mock-up of a typical burial site.
Finally, we arrive at a sign that marks the exact equator as measured by a military GPS.
It is hard to tell in this photo, but i am standing on the equator, looking at that post in the middle that marks the equator … and the entire path in front of me is filled with various interesting displays … ALL along the exact equator line.
If you click-to-enlarge, you can see more detail. This is just like the previous photo, only taken from a slight angle, with a little more zoom, giving a glimpse of all the displays from here to the other end.
Me, standing in front of the marker.
Looking at a sun-dial (of sorts), exactly above the equator.
Zooming in on the top of the sun-dial. The nearest letter “O” in the foreground stands for “Oeste” or “West”. North is to the left, South to the right, and East on the far side.
In other words, I am standing in the west, looking along the equator toward the east.
Another sign marking the exact “latitude of zero degrees, zero minutes, and zero seconds”.
You can barely see a globe in the upper left.
A Sun-dial that actually shows the correct time (more or less). (Click to enlarge).
This photo was taken at 1:31 p.m. (according to the time stamp of my camera) … and the dial reads about “1:20 p.m.” … this is also off because of the way time zones work.
Here on the equator, the sun is quite constant (yes, it shifts to the north and south), but the sun rises right around 6:00 a.m. and sets right around 6:00 p.m., on a daily basis, year round.
The top left number on the dial represents 6:00 p.m., and the top right number represents 6:00 a.m., and the number at the exact middle of the bottom is 12:00 p.m. (noon).
Another view of the sign …
The red line is the exact equator. The globe on the display behind is lined up so that the equator of the globe matches the red line.
I felt directionaly-disoriented right here. This photo is looking from the west toward the east … but it still feels to me as if it is from the east, looking west.
I continue to feel the disorientation (memory) as I stare at this photo. Something about the magnetics here really confused my natural sense of direction.
Me, standing behind the sign.
Standing on the other side of the globe, looking back toward the sign in the previous photo.
From this angle, I am obviously standing in the east, looking toward the west. If you were to find my spot on this globe, I am right about at the exact center of the globe (as seen from this angle).
Ecuador straddles the equator on the Pacific Coast of South America.
I don’t fully understand the meaning of this “sun-dial”. The left side represents the Northern Hemisphere of the planet, and marks a “Glacial” line and a “Tropic of Cancer” line … the right side is the Southern Hemisphere, and the shadow goes across a label that is partially removed. I assume it would be “Tropic of Capricorn” …
I have no idea what the shadow shows … somehow orienting the sun with the seasons and the wobble of the earth ???
In this one, I am standing directly on the equator, with the “N” and “S” indicating that the north is to my left (I am looking to the east).
Some of my tour group taking photos along this red equator line.
Another view of the globe, looking from the North, zooming in on the area from Peru to Guatemala and Mexico… getting a perspective on my travels. The southern edge of the US is also visible in this photo.
From this angle, it looks as if Quito is almost directly south of Florida.
I giggled when I saw this gold sink straddling the equator. They have it set up to that they fill the sink, let the water get still, add a couple of leaves, and then pull the cork below (allowing it to empty into a bucket).
The sink is then moved to the North and South, repeating the experiment in each place.
In this demonstration, the water really did spin down the drain in different directions when moved just a few feet in different directions.
I tried, but found it impossible to get a still photo that could capture the sense of spinning. In this photo the leaves are following the spinning currents down the drain … but I cannot tell which way they are spinning.
This part of the red line (equator) dead ends into this wall … a three-dimensional mural that appears to be some type of map …
I don’t understand the science behind this (or if there is any ‘real’ science at all) … but we were told that the equator is the only place in the world where the magnetism and gravitational pulls actually allow you to balance a raw egg on the head of a nail.
In this photo, I am watching someone else try to do it.
I spent several minutes, but was finally successful in doing it. It is not as easy as it looks. The contents of the egg move around a lot and you have to get it really still … but finally, I succeeded. I even got a certificate confirming that I did it.
This is the egg that I balanced …. but this photo was taken after someone else removed it and then did it again (I didn’t think to take a photo immediately after I balanced it).
That really is a raw egg, perched atop a flat nail-head (about a quarter inch in diameter, less than a centimeter).
In this photo, our tour guide (right, with hat) is demonstrating to the tall tourist how our strength and balance is actually affected differently when we stand on the equator line versus standing ten feet away.
We did another thing where we tried to walk along the red line with our eyes closed. It was almost impossible not to wobble and fall over. I literally felt as if I were drunk when I dried to do so. The magnetic effects (and gravitation?) are quite interesting here – affecting our inner equilibrium.
Finally, our time exploring the ‘red line’ of the exact equator is finished, and we do a final exploration of the museum.
This is inside of a typical dwelling (recreated).
And another photo … seems quite cheesy and artificial to me.
A hand loom for weaving.
Some of my group in front of the hut.
A display with guinea pigs, talking about how they eat them in this part of the world.
At the end of the tour, we waited in front of a little souvenir store …
There is a reflective dish here (by that totem pole). There was a bowl of water perched in the center … and it was quite hot from the reflected heat of the sun.
They did a little traditional dance while we waited … I found the attire quite unusual, unlike anything I have seen in my travels.
The young woman is now dancing.
Soon, she (the dancer) grabbed a couple of tourists to join her (she tried to grab me but I was not in the mood).
After the dance, we met up with the Spanish half of our group, got our passports stamped as having been at the equator, and headed back to our bus. When I asked about seeing that building that we skipped in the beginning, our guide was ready to try to make it happen (he had forgotten) … but we all decided to instead move on to the “Mitad Del Mundo” official park.
As our bus parked in the parking lot, I took this photo of the “Mitad Del Mundo” monument (center distance).
A close-up view of the towering monument. It is quite large.
A cute “hummingbird” bench. There were many of these around the park.
Standing on the west, looking along the yellowish-orange “equator” line toward the east.
According to Wikipedia (and other rumors), this line is actually 240 meters (262 yards) off of the real equator … but it is still fun to be here anyway.
Looking up at the towering monument from the same place. I walked all around it. The yellowish-orange line represents the equator.
Zooming in on the globe at the top of the monument. It is difficult to see details.
I was surprised to discover that, on the east side of the monument, there is a door that leads in to a museum. First you take an elevator to the top, and then spiral down a descending walkway past displays all the way back down.
This photo is taken from a view area near the top … looking back to the west from where I was taking the earlier photos.
A similar photo, only it capture part of the nearby town behind it.
The Pululahua crater is up in the mountain that is barely visible at the top right.
From the view area, looking southeast. This part of the “Mitad Del Mundo” park is like a small city of museums, restaurants, and plazas …
From the same place, looking directly to the east. Most of the little “city-like” area is right down there.
From the ground on the east side, looking up toward the globe.
Looking from the east back toward the west. You can see that the sky is clouding up and it is getting windy and cold.
Wandering around the “city-like” part. I ate a quick lunch in a small restaurant near here.
The restaurant in this photo was quite expensive.
The restaurant where I ate was on the far side of this plaza, at the center of this photo.
On the way back to Quito in our tour bus, our guide announced that we should all choose our favorite photo of the day, and that we would enter it in a photo contest (with the other tour participants).
I entered this photo of the colorful canopy at the center of the “Mitad Del Mundo” park area. The yellowish-orange line continues to mark the equator.
I won second place for this photo. I absolutely love the colors.
The yellowish-orange equator line (still not accurate) runs right into this little chapel in this city-like tourist village.
Inside of the chapel … the equator runs right down the middle.
Another beautiful hummingbird bench (you can sit on the green leaf part).
It was cold and windy, and I spent my final hour exploring the museums, and then watching a so-so planetarium show (which was included in our tour).
After that show, we met back at the bus for our ride back to Quito.
As we were about half of the way back to Quito, we were interrupted by this small local festival parade. Lots of people were dressed up like clowns, blocking the intersection as they marched across.
When they saw our tour bus and cameras, they all started to wave at us.
Two of them even came over to entertain us.
The end of the parade as it finishes crossing the street.
This photo was taken just after 5:00 p.m. … and less than an hour later I found myself back on a metro-bus, headed to the historic center of Quito.
After finding a so-so dinner, I spent the evening in my hostel, making final arrangements for my new computer purchase (ordered from Amazon, sent to a friend in Manhattan, scheduled to be hand-delivered to Guatemala in a couple of weeks).
Then, while feeling exhausted, I unpacked and charged up my new android tablet. Soon, I was playing with installing the apps I needed (I had no experience with android or with tablets, but figured it out. I was thrilled that I could once again access emails, Skype, and Facebook…
Late that night, feeling totally drained and energized at the same time, I set my alarm to get up at 4:30 a.m. for my next tour. Details will be found in my next post.
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