Bob and Joyce
Ecuador and Galapagos Islands Adventure
The Equator
Less than 30 minutes from downtown Quito is the equator. We visited a monument that marks the line separating the northern and southern hemispheres of the planet. Some pictures tell some of the story:
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This monument lies exactly on the equator. It houses a wonderful museum, which has exhibits about many of the regions of Ecuador. Truly a delightful and informative place to visit on our first full day in the country. |
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An orange line marks the equator which I had not noticed on
earlier trips by air to the South Pacific or Chile. Here we see Bob and Joyce in different hemispheres of the earth.
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This is about the same longitude as Niagara Falls, NY |
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North and South as seen from the top |
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Bob with a one cheek in the North and one in the South |
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And Joyce with one foot in each place. |
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The next day we drove north along the Pan American Highway and crossed the equator again, which was marked by this little sphere. |
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Our guide, Gonzalo, explains that the equator crosses over the side of the Cayumbe Volcano (visible under the clouds between the trees just in front of Ed's head). Gonzalo tries to minimize my disappointment .......... |
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...........that the orange line marking the Equator doesn't
even cross the highway at this point. It should have been crossing the
highway from the cement post, through the bus and over the Volcano in the
background.
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| Note: The Pan American Highway here goes all the way from Anchorage, Alaska down through California, through Quito (Middle of the world), to Ushuaia, Argentina (The end of the world) with only a brief separation near Panama. We traveled frequently on the Highway later on this trip as well as during earlier adventures in South America, California, Alaska, and more. | |
© Copyright 2003 Robert E. Graf