Wear sun screen! We woke up this morning feeling a bit sore and run down. I’m pretty sure it had to do with the burned scalp, forehead, and necks. I have always tolerated the sun very well, but with being so much further south and being so high up I am paying the price for my forgetfulness.
We headed out about 9:00 this morning and caught a cab out to Mitad del Mundo, or the middle of the world. It is about 13km outside of Quito. We had read quite a bit about the expense or time to get out there but I didn’t think it was that bad. From our place it took 12 minutes and $10 to get there. It would have taken less than $2 for both of us had we taken the bus but I had read reports of one to two hours of travel time. Instead we enjoyed an exciting ride through open roads to the site. As well, I can now strike racing at Daytona off my list as I believe we had a close representation of it today.
Mitad del Mundo is every bit the tourist trap the reviews say it is. However if you have come this far you have to go there. The monument is kind of cool (yes I know it is not in the right place, get over it) and the educational displays inside are enlightening. The shops around are just what you would find in Banff, Tijuana, or Sea World and some are just as expensive, but if you poke around you can find some reasonably priced souvenirs. We had a great snack at lunch time
Two cerveza grande and a couple of empanada de pollo for $5. Sitting under an umbrella with the sun shining, hard to beat.
We then walked the 200 metres to the actual equator and checked out the displays at
This group has done a pretty good job at there facility. For your $4 entrance fee they give you a guided tour and several hands on demonstrations to try out. A couple are a bit hokey, but I have to be honest when I get back I’ll be trying some of them at home to see if it really was being at the equator that made them possible. And if something provokes you to look further into educating yourself then I believe it has done well.
Karen trying….
And succeeding at balancing an egg on its end on the head of a nail.
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