The Middle of the World

If you travel to Ecuador, one of the main tourist attractions to visit is La Ciudad Mitad del Mundo, the Middle of the World City. The Equator, prime meridian, is located about 13 kilometers North of Quito. This is the imaginary line where the Northern and Southern hemispheres are divided. The monument located in the Middle of the World is not the exact location of the Equator. This was determined before GPSs and the exact 0° latitude is located 200 meters from there in the Inti Ñan Museum. We only went to La Mitad del Mundo, but I will try to visit Inti Ñan on our next trip to Ecuador.

The entrance fee to the Middle of the World City is $2 dollars. The City is a replica of a Spanish town and it has restaurants, shops, and a plaza for concerts on the weekends. There is also a planetarium and other museums. 

The 30 meter monument has a museum inside about the indigenous groups in Ecuador. We were lucky to have a great guide with us who told us all about the history and customs of the native Indians. Because of him we  didn't have to pay the $2 or $3 fee. Our guide, Gynson, is Andre's dad assistant and he studied tourism. Just the perfect combination for our Historic Center Tour with Andre's sister who is an art history teacher. We walked around, had lunch, shopped for souvenirs, and took pictures.  

Silly but almost obligated picture

The globe at the top of the monument

View from the top

I am biased to say that my favorite part of the Middle of the World City is the Fundacion Quito Colonial. This is a miniature replica of the historic Center of Quito. This model was hand made by my father in law. The detailing of his work is impressive and the model has lights that change from day to sunset to night and sunrise. He also made a miniature model of the Ecuadorian Cities Cuenca and Guayaquil. Those models are located in separate buildings. 

The artist

Photo Credit: Fundacion Quito Colonial 

Photo Credit: Fundacion Quito Colonial

Photo Credit: Fundacion Quito Colonial

After our tour of the Middle of the World we went to see the inactive and populated Pululahua volcano located about 20 minutes from there. We drove into the El Crater Hotel that had a beautiful view. We took a few pictures and returned to the City.

Pululahua