Blogs from Mitad del Mundo, North, Ecuador, South America
Equator, Museums, and a Market
Published: April 30th 2012South America » Ecuador » North » Mitad del Mundo
April 28th 2012
Saturday was a trip to the Equator line, about an hour and a half outside of Quito, and vey crowded public buses. The first bus we took was one of the extra long 'accordion' buses. According to the sign on the bus, it's capacity was 42 seated, 118 standing! Third World for you, everyone takes the bus, few get a seat. Did manage to get one on the second bus, though, as we got on on the first stop. A number of people got on and off again as the journey progressed, selling Catholic blessing cards, candies, snacks. There was also a blind beggar who was singing along to a portable radio, somewhat off-key. By far the nicest dressed gentleman on the bus, a businessman with a sharp suit and fancy watch, made a point to ... read more
October 9th 2011
Swishing water, balancing eggs and walking the line...yes, I was right on the equator, maybe?. Isabel and Luis Fernando were kind enough to take me for a day of sightseeing outside of Quito. First we went to Reserva Geobotanica Pululahua where I saw the volcanic crater. There are communities living inside the crater and of course there's a hotel. We did not walk down the trail...save that for next time. Next we went to Museo Solar Inti Nan. I really enjoyed learning about the indigenous cultures and viewing the exhibitions. The solar chronometer was cool (instrument that tells time by the rays of the sun). The water and energy demonstrations were fun too! The tour was in Spanish...I think I understand 90% of it...yippee. We then went to The Middle of the World City. We walked ... read more
June 9th 2011
Today marked the trip to the Mitad de Mundo. We left with Stephen, John, Sandra, Amanda, Lucho, Miguel, and his 11 year old daughter, Joanna. We drove to Pululahua, a dormant volcano. The caldera in the middle is the location of a small, poor, primarily agricultural village. Its elderly inhabitants must walk up the arduous path early every morning to the market above to sell their goods. No car, sometimes a burro by their side. The landscape was gorgeous. So much green, and the clouds dreamily floating amidst the mountains. We then arrived at the first Mitad del Mundo. Here marks the exact latitude, 0˚0˚0˚. We took a tour of the indigenous houses and the traditions of the people there and then began to make our way to the center of the earth. We performed various ... read more
Quito, Guayaquil, Shell y final de la saga de la MVG
Published: February 15th 2011South America » Ecuador » North » Mitad del Mundo
February 14th 2011
Hace un mes estábamos en Costa Rica, celebrando el envío de la MVG a Ecuador. Aún la saga tenía un capítulo más, ilusamente pensé que sólo me restaría escribir en Ecuador el famoso, THE END; más no fue así. Dios tenía Su plan, Su tiempo, y Su manera de hacerlo. Después de depositar la mvg en el contenedor para ser enviado a Guayaquil, nos restaban cinco días, los que se supone serían los días de transito del barco. Así que teníamos cuatro días antes de volar a Quito y así ir al encuentro de la mvg, rápido y sin contratiempos. Era sólo una utopía, al parecer todos en Guayaquil lo sabían y nosotros éramos la excepción. Unos ángeles llamados Marilú y Fulvio (mi mamá tica de Costa Rica) que Dios envió para nuestro cuidado, al enterarse ... read more
February 6th 2011
Well you can´t do Ecuador without doing the equator... Had a great day at the Equator hopping from one hemisphere to the next like a big kid. I took the trip with a fantastic Chilean couple (Jose & Conni). We had a great laugh and I´ve picked up some chileño Spanish which could well come in handy in the coming months! On our way back we passed the football stadium in Quito where fans were gathering for "El Gran Clasico" between Liga de Quito and Barcelona (Ecuador´s equivalent of the old firm derby). The fans were going crazy at each other and there were as many riot police as there were fans. So you could have been forgiven for thinking this was the build to the game...in fact, this was merely the queue to get tickets ... read more
January 20th 2011
The Equator. Middle earth so to speak. Did you know that if you take a raw egg with you that you can balance it on the head of a nail? Apparently you can and so we did! Ridiculous and a little nerdy? Yes. But I know you are jealous. (The following are a few pictures from the museum and other places right around the equator.)... read more
The centre of the World
Published: December 27th 2010South America » Ecuador » North » Mitad del MundoDecember 3rd 2010
Still scared to use the local buses around Quito we decided to take a taxi tour ($13) to the equator. Many people had told us the equator was a tourist trap but we were determined to get the line straddling picture! First stop on the tour was Pululahua Crater. After the taxi driver trying to talk to us in Spanish, we managed to figure out that he was saying “I’ll wait here, you walk up there and look.” The crater was a couple of houses in the valley between three mountains. It was very pretty but nothing real special. Second stop was the equator museum. Entry to the museum was $3, we didn’t know if this was a tour so we started walking around only to be shouted at 2 minutes later saying “Wait over here.” ... read more
The Equator and Pulula Hua Volcano
Published: July 25th 2010South America » Ecuador » North » Mitad del Mundo
July 16th 2010
Friday 16.7.2010 day 275 The Equator and Pulula Hua Volcano We got up at 8:00 and had bfast at the hostel then we walked down to the metro bus station and got the bus to Ofelia then we got on to a new bus to Mitad Del Mundo were the Equator line is. We had a bit of a look around the fake line then we took a tour to Pulula Hua Volcano which is active volcano but about 100 people live in the crater of it. There is even a small primary school with 12 students in the crater. There were lots of school students walking down and up to the town when we were there. It is about a 1.4 km walk but straight down. There is a road in but the locals do ... read more
Day 98 - Latitude 0 0 0: Mitad del Mundo
Published: July 26th 2010South America » Ecuador » North » Mitad del Mundo
June 28th 2010
Today we left early to account for a repeat of our problematic attempt to reach the equator a couple of weeks ago. This time we caught the right bus (their public transport is more confusing for a foreigner than the London Underground would be) and rode an hour and a half to La Mitad del Mundo (the middle of the world), a bizarre complex consisting of more restaurants and souvenir shops that anything else, but with a photo worthy monument and a few mind-boggling experiments. I weighed myself on the equator, where it is claimed you weigh 2% less (although the Lonely Planet says it is only 0.3% less than at the poles). Given I haven't weighed myself at home for a year or two (except for peeking apprehensively when the nurse weighs me!) I could ... read more
June 18th 2010
After Rapa Nui and Cusco, Mitad del Mundo is actually the third navel to be visited on my trip. Walking through the park of the Equator Monument on a sunny Sunday afternoon is an amazing experience, as you never get tired of people watching. Additionally, there were some incredible live salsa and cumbia rythms on in the park. Therefore I was really happy that my friend Natasha suggested to visit the park, as it was not on my list of stuff-to-do around Quito. Funnily enough, the equator does not run through the park where the big Equator Monument is situated, but it can be found about 200 metres off the park at the Museum Inti Nan. But it does not matter. :)... read more
