Truth: This yellow line is not the equator, or “middle of the earth” as it’s known in Ecuador. This line, and the subsequent park were built around the measurements calculated by French astronomers in 1736. It’s slightly off though, and according to GPS calculations, the real equator is a short walk away. Don’t believe me? Read more about it here. (Because of bad weather in Quito this week, I split up our visit to the equator into two “days” on the blog, so the real equator is coming at you tomorrow!) I felt a little silly visiting this line, knowing it wasn’t even the real line of the equator, but it felt silly not going. Instead of posing like every other tourist there with one foot in each hemisphere, we walked the line. balanced on the line. tip-toed on the line.
Another truth: I’m not really sure who this dude in the last picture is, but there were lots of busts of explorers leading up to the monument, so I thought one of them deserved their picture taken.