La Mitad del Mundo

No one should ask me which buses to take in order to get to La Mitad del Mundo! I have no idea.

When I found out this morning at school that Alessandra was heading there during the break, I immediately asked if she would mind having some company. No, not at all! Okay, then ask the principal and the teacher. No, definitely not!

So I joined Alessandra again, who had come up with the following plan: Take a taxi to the Ofelia station in the north of the city. From there, it's easy to catch the bus to La Mitad. And it worked. We just had to make sure to get off at the right place.

La Mitad del Mundo is exactly what it says: The middle of the Earth. The equator line goes through there, and you can stand with one foot in the north and the other in the south. It's a huge tourist attraction, whether for locals or foreigners. There's a big monument, a complex of small buildings that document the measurement of the Earth, etc. etc.

However, the fact is that the equator doesn't actually pass through where the yellow line in this complex runs or where the monument stands. No, the equator is about 100 meters to the north. In the photos, that's the red line, which is in a neighboring complex called Museo de Sitio Intiñan. And if I had to decide which place to visit, it would definitely be the latter. Although the entrance fee costs $4, they offer a short guided tour in Spanish or English, which is really great. They talk a lot about the country, the different indigenous peoples, and in one building they show the chocolate-making process, including a tasting of raw cocoa beans and later. The cocoa plant originally comes from Ecuador, and by the way, this is where the world's best cocoa comes from. In this case, the cocoa comes from Cailler Milchschoggi, which is my favorite. But then I have to swallow a bit because apparently, in recent years, Ecuadorian products have been sweeping the world chocolate awards. I wouldn't go so far as to take chocolate from here to Switzerland!!

One particularly interesting part of the tour is the experiments at the equator. The most impressive experiment for me was the following: A container filled with water is placed 3 meters south of the equator. The drain is closed with a plug. When the plug is pulled, the water flows out in a clockwise whirlpool. The same experiment on the equator and the water simply flows straight down. 3 meters to the north... You all know that, the drain flows counterclockwise.

Also impressive are the explanations about the different indigenous groups. For example, the production of shrunken heads by the Shuar is shown in a vivid way. There's also a real shrunken head, about the size of a fist. (I'll visit the Shuar in two weeks.) And then there's the Huaorani, who also live in the Amazon and are known for walking completely naked, with the men tying up their genitals with a string so that they don't get in the way when walking, and putting larger and larger pieces of wood in their perforated earlobes. A house built by the Huaorani is also replicated there. There's also a house from the Sierra, the highlands, built with branches and clay, perfectly designed for the cold and the climate at over 3000 meters. Truly impressive. And do you know how the indigenous people north of Quito used to bury their dead? Just like the Incas, in a large clay pot in a fetal position, with everything included. That means weapons, food, and... oh yes, the wife had to go too if her husband was a shaman. By the way, they also had powerful hallucinogenic natural drugs. Again, about the tribes in the Amazon: There are some that live completely isolated and do not wish to have contact with other people. This is accepted and approved by the government. If someone goes there anyway, it's their own fault: They will be killed. That's it!

Yes, it was a great day! At the end, I had to thank Alessandra. It was the second time she had a great idea and I could just go along. Especially because she had done some research beforehand and our professors told her that this Museo de Sitio Intiñan is the better, more interesting place. If I had gone alone, I would have missed it.

On the way back, we took a blue bus (they're all blue, by the way!) that went to the center of Quito. A very nice woman sat next to Alessandra on the bus and they talked about all sorts of things. She gave Alessandra her phone number in case there was a boring day and she could show us around the city a bit. Since Alessandra is flying back to Brazil the day after tomorrow, this offer from the woman named Laura now applies to me. People in Switzerland, I have to tell you: They are so helpful here, it's unbelievable. Everyone! Not that everyone offers you private tours, definitely not. But if you ask someone something, they will help you without hesitation. Not only the person you asked, but three of the people around will also point out the corresponding bus stop where you should get off. They greet you with calmness, openness, and pure warmth here.