La Mitad del Mundo AND MORE!

Left foot Northern Hemisphere, Right foot Southern

      In case you didn't put two and two together, "ecuador" means equator in Spanish!  And guess what!?!  The equator runs straight through Ecuador!  Knowing that fools like me can't resist the opportunity to take a photo with one foot in each hemisphere, savvy Ecuadorians have constructed a small village of tourist attractions along the equator, roughly 15 minutes north of Quito.  
      My friend Henry offered to take me sightseeing on Saturday and, rather admirably, did not rescind his generous invitation when I suggested that we take in this geographical phenomenon.  We had initially planned on visiting THIS Mitad del Mundo ("The Middle of the World"), the better known attraction, complete with a grand (actually, pretty ugly) monument, museum, and cultural displays.  This "official" attraction marks the site of the equator as defined by some French scientists in the lat 18th century.  Not surprisingly, though, THE FRENCH GOT IT WRONG!  GPS reveals that the true equator lies a several hundred meters away.  French incompetence aside, when we arrived at said attraction, it was closed.  Hordes of angry tourists in fanny packs stood-by incredulously as a man explained that, in typical Ecuadorian fashion, the park had closed its doors for the day in protest.  (Employees felt that the entrance fees demanded by the Provence of Pichincha were prohibitively high for everyday Ecuadorians.)
      Rather than admit defeat, though, we walked down the road a bit to the Intiñan Solar Museum, supposedly located along the true equator.  This place was straight up crazy.  There was an exhibition about indigenous peoples of Ecuador, along with shrunken heads and many, MANY taxidermied animals.  On the equator itself, the tour guide presented us with several demonstrations of physical phenomena, nearly all of which were of dubious scientific merit.  If I am to believe what he told us, it is easier to balance an egg on a nail along the equator and more difficult to walk a straight line.  He also tricked me into believing that toilets REALLY DO flush in opposite directions in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.  FALSE!  In the end, though, I must say that I give this museum GLOWING reviews.  The kitsch factor was undeniable.  
      From the museum, Henry and I went to a nearby health club with pools, waterslides, saunas, steam rooms, and hot tubs.  It was fun and relaxing, but, rather unfortunately, when I close my eyes and think back on the afternoon, all I see is a montage of overweight, hairy, middle-aged Ecuadorian men in impossibly small Speedos.  
      We ended the day at a Chifa, a Chinese restaurant.  Chinese food is quite popular here and somehow gets away with promoting itself as incredibly healthy.  Ecuadorian people, thus, can enjoy a guilt-free plate of fried rice with a side of french fries.  We should all be so lucky.