This is the only place on the Equator that isn´t deep in forest. As such, there's a suitably impressive monument to mark the meeting of hemispheres.

Unfortunately, this monument is 200m out from the Equator, and this should be a hint for you: avoid the big obvious park. Go right for a bit to the Museo Solar Itni Nan that marks the actual Equator.

This lo-fi museum is a very enjoyable hands-on experience that is well worth the $2 entry. It's full of pop-science experiments to demonstrate the different forces at the Equator.

But what the kids will really enjoy is the chance to fire a 6-foot blowpipe! I was surprised at how easy and powerful it was.

So how do you get there? Well, it's about an hour by bus from Quito, but I took some pretty random buses. Best option is to ask the people where you´re staying - it's a huge tourist attraction.

So you want to go visit the monument? Well, alright then. Go and speak to the endearingly crazy research people in the Ecuador pavillion. They'll flash pictures at you to try and convince you that they're right, but more interesting is their discovery of the secrets of Quito...

Mitad del Mundo is one of those artificial villages that usually I would call a tourist trap, but it somehow managed to come off quite charming. All of the whitewashed buildings with adobe rooves are set up like a colonial village, ice cream shops abound, and on a sunny day, the atmosphere is just plain pleasant. Although we were there around noon on a Saturday, there weren't many people there, adding to the tranquility.

On weekends, there are live musicians and street performers. The day of my visit, there was a travelling circus, which was entertaining, though not earth shattering. That was followed by Ecuadorian performer who somehow managed to blend punchlines, slapstick, biting social commentary, and a plea to work for a better Ecuador into an amazingly funny stand-up bit. He's there most weekends, so if you understand Spanish, don't miss it.

There are a number of restaurants there. We had a delicious meal at El Karting, followed by helado on the terrace overlooking the plaza at one of Mitad's thousand ice cream shops.

There is an excursion from there to the nearby volcanic crater of Pululahua, which unfortunately I missed, but it comes very highly recommended.

The museums, I hear, are not particularly exciting, although the ethnographic museum inside the equatorial monument may be worth your time. Go to relax, take a picture on the Equator, have an ice cream, and enjoy the view.

The site is a short car/cab ride north of the city, or there is a bus you can catch along Avenida America at Av. Colón (walkable from the Mariscal district). I believe many of the northbound buses from the terminal pass Mitad as well. Entrance fees were about $1.

A massive monument commemorates the work of the French geodetic mission which, under the direction of Charles Marie of Condamine, in the 17th century, is the layout of the line symbolic of the equator. This remarkable place excites the imaginary one. A bathroom scale invites the philistine to confirm the theory. Oddly doesn't the GPS of Christian indicate 0° 0' 0 ", which to believe? Some have fun to go on the line, history to have a foot in each hemisphere.