When you’re in Ecuador you kind of have to visit some Equator related landmark. The most famous one around Quito is Mitad del Mundo, which in my eyes is some sort of take on an amusement park, and not one I particularly liked… In addition to the monument and the yellow line indicating the Equator, which is nothing more than that, there’s an ethnography museum, a planetarium and some buildings showing colonial Quito (not my cup of tea), and a myriad of souvenir shops and places to eat or pick up a snack (waaaay too many, making the whole thing feel like a tourist trap). And then they say it’s not the true point of the equatorial line. But that the Intinan Solar Museum next door is. Who knows. I didn’t look into it. I did however like the solar museum a lot better. Ditch this one, and do the other, is my recommendation.
This was part of a road trip from Quito. The owner of the hostel I stayed at didn’t find anyone who was doing a tour of the things I wanted to see and at the time I was able to go, so she took me herself. Bless her! We had a lot of fun considering she didn’t speak much English, and I don’t speak much Spanish 🙂
Website: mitaddelmundo.com
There is something similar in Norway when you cross the Arctic Circle. We didn’t bother.
How coll that your lodger took you on a tour!
#FarawayFiles
I know, I’m from the Arctic Norway area. Crossed it many times 🙂 Yes, very nice of her!
I love a random Equator monument #FarawayFiles
It’s just a cool place to have set foot, however briefly.
How lovely that your hostel owner took you on a tour. That’s so special! Thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles
It was great! She “forced” me to go to Pululahua Crater, and it was incredibly beautiful!!
How awesome to see the Middle of the World! And how cool is it your hostel owner took you on a trip! That’s customer service! #FarawayFiles
Cool x 2 🙂 Super customer service!
Love those lines….#Farawayfiles
Fun gimmick 🙂
Hmmm…did you try that experiment of flushing the toilet? On the north side, it should swirl in a different direction as it would on the other side! Fact or fiction?
I didn’t see that here, but at the solar museum next door (post coming 🙂 ). And it does. I had never heard of it. Have a friend who’s lived in Australia, and she noticed it. I didn’t think about it when I was down under either 🙂
LOL. We thought about it suddenly too because your post reminded us of this science series on TV. Not sure if the directions do change as you cross the line or has it got to be further!
They just moved the sink from one side of the line to the other. Like a couple of meters from the first spot, and the direction changed. Fun!
Oh wow. So it really works then!