In Both Halves of the World

Today we traveled to the Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World). After asking around about how to get there, we thought we had the directions figured out, but when we got to the first trolley stop, the ticket seller informed us that the trams were temporarily not running but we could walk to the other station. We walked to the other station, and there the trolleys were also suspended due to the march. We tried to get a bus, but none went where we wanted. Then we tried to get a taxi, but it was too expensive (aka $7 for 3 of us). So we waited and the trams started up and we crammed into the first one. Then at the first stop, more people crammed into the overly full trolley and this continued pretty much for all 15 or so stops:) so we were slightly hot and I even got a blister on my hand from holding on. But we eventually made it after changing onto another bus. We entered this huge compound with a big museum in the middle, restaurants, shops, and a planetarium, which all seemed slightly excessive for the 20 or so tourists that made it out there. But it was a thrill to stand in both the northern and southern hemisphere in the same moment. And the trip back was much easier, except that it decided to start pouring rain about 5 minutes before our stop. But we made it back in time for Elizabeth to make her movie debut and are now safely back in the hostal in Quito. Tomorrow we are heading down to Baños, Ecuador.