Trip to the Equador (Mitad Del Mundo)

Ecuador got its name because of its location on the equator and  Mitad Del Mundo is actually the place  where the measurements for the equatorial line were originally done. This location was used because it has the highest elevation, so it is technically the closest place in the world to the sun. Which helps explain how my brother and I manage to get sunburned when its cloudy and rainy outside.

Monument at the fake line

Mitad Del Mundo is located about an 1.5 hours from Quito by public bus, so one day after class we decided to attempt the Quito bus system to visit. We had to take two buses to get there and thanks to directions from our Canadian classmates and some strangers along the way, we managed to find it.

The big attraction in Mital Del Mundo is the "official" monument which we paid $2.00 to see. On weekends it is a big tourist destination with live salsa bands in the square. We however came on a Wednesday afternoon so there was nothing but the monument and some tourist shops. The biggest catch with the monument is that it's not located on the true 0.00 latitude line, the true line lies 300m away.

The real line

Our teacher had advised us to visit the the Museo de Sitio Intinan located outside the park right next door. As we went on the museum tour we soon learned that this was actually where the true equator line was located.  The museum actually ended up being the true highlight of our trip to Mital Del Mundo. To help show the difference in the equator line they would actually do experiments like showing how the water could drain straight on the equator line, drain right on the south side and left on the north side. The also had us doing experiments to show how your gravity and strength is through off on the equator line (trying walking a straight line on the equator...not as easy as it sounds...we all looked drunk).

We found out that the monument was built where they had officially though the equator line lied however as camera and cell phone GPS became more popular, people started noticing that it didn't match up and would keep walking until it said 0.00 and then take there picture.  They then brought in the military with all their satellites again to test and determined that the monument wasn't actually on the line but since the Ecuadorian government had already invested in created the monument they decided they would still use it as the equator mark and built a wall, so people couldn't use their GPS to find the real one. The Museum which had always existed on the true equator was allowed to stay open but isn't allow to advertise since they want people to think the monument is the true line.

Real shrunken head of 12 year old boy

The museum in addition to having the true equator line also provided us with a ton of information on the wildlife and the Amazon natives. We got to see a real shrunken head and hear how and why they were created. We also found out that the official natives still live in remote parts of the jungle and have been know to kill people who try to enter their community. My brother actually said this was the most interesting museum he has ever been to, so if you visit Mitad Del Mundo make sure to hit this museum.