STUPID EQUATOR TRICKS.

Finally had a chance to get out to the Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World) tourist trap just north of Quito. It was as silly and pointless as I was expecting. Reminded me a bit of "South of the Border" but with an Andean theme instead of Mexican. In any case, the lure of doing stupid things on the spot where the Northern and Southern hemispheres meet draws quite a crowd and we were no exception. Here my amigo and I are trying to make an outward-facing human handstand arch over the actual Equatorial line. Mission accomplished...

...for a second or two, then we toppled over (both times onto the Northern side I believe...wonder what the significance is there)

As I said, straaaange things happen on the Equator. Here I am doing a headstand with my pants down (up?). It gets confusing in that energy vortex. Or something like that. Tourist traps are just odd places all around. You should see the butt-scooching time lapse video we took. Now THAT´s entertainment.

The three amigos I accompanied on this voyage to the supposedly easiest place on the planet to access the Equator.

Alright, I know you read your Lonely Planet and it says that Mitad del Mundo is NOT actually the site of the real Equator. Apparently someone went back with a GPS years after they built that 100 foot monument and lo and behold, discovered that the REAL equator is a few hundred meters away. Well just to put any nay-sayers to rest, here´s a shot of me on THAT equatorial line. Booyah!