Oh, how we devoted travelers love to return home and boast to our friends that we’ve been to the ends of the earth. However, standing on the Mitad del Mundo (translated from Spanish as “middle of the world”) brings its own bragging rights. But there are two lines near Ecuador’s capital of Quito, claiming to represent the equator. Which one is right? I decided to find out.
The modern-day marking of the line dividing the northern and southern hemispheres can be traced to the First Geodesic Mission. It was a French-led expedition, which arrived in 1736 in the Spanish territory of Quito. In 1936, a monument was constructed to observe the bicentennial of this mission. Two relocations later, the tower can be found about 14 miles (23km) north of Quito, near San Antonio de Pichincha.
 |
An aerial view of the equator includes the “Mitad del Mundo” tourist complex in the background. |
The new monument is a “super-sized” re-creation of the original. Standing just under 100 feet tall (30 m), it is an imposing semi-obelisk made of iron and cement, and coated with polished stones from a neighboring mountain.
It is crowned by a giant globe, approximately 15 feet (4.5 m) wide and weighing a solid 5 tons. The monument stands in the center of a circular lawn with markers for each of the cardinal headings (North, South, East and West).
It’s a sunny, warm day in September as my friends and I stroll around the lawn, soaking in the pleasant surroundings while crossing the equator from south to north, then south again. I know there’s nothing magic about this particular spot, and yet I feel we’ve circumnavigated the earth in a matter of minutes.
The most popular photo-op is at the “E” marker. Here we take pictures of one another with our arms splayed out wide, the obelisk looming in the background, and our feet straddling on each side of this alleged equator. With the mandatory tourist photos out of the way, we decide to visit the ethnographic museum inside the monument.
 |
The museum uses mannequins, clothing, rafts, hunting and farming equipment, paintings, photos and placards to illustrate the various groups of indigenous people that have resided in the diverse regions of Ecuador. The temptation to snag the multi-colored hats and shawls from the displays and try them on is almost overwhelming…. almost. Overall, the exhibit is a bit dry, so we briskly move through the remaining floors and head for the exit.
The equatorial monument resides in a locale named Ciudad Mitad del Mundo or, in English, Middle of the World City. We wander about this tourist complex that replicates a Spanish colonial town. It’s a close approximation, assuming colonial towns typically had planetariums, snack-bars with pre-packaged ice-cream treats and shops selling “I stood on the Equator” t-shirts. My friends are ready to leave, but I insist that we see the “other” equator.
About 820 feet (250 m) from Ciudad Mitad del Mundo and tucked away farther from the main road is the open-air museum Museo Inti-Ñan, translated from the indigenous Quechuan language as “Path of the Sun.” Scanning the museum, I see several wooden huts, a small pyramid, totem poles and other attractions, all spaced out between a variety of native plants, bushes and trees.
Continued: Mitad del Mundo: Journey to the Center of the World
1 |2 |Next
|
