Quito, Ecuador

John and Mary on the Equator

We spent most of yesterday going from Lima, Peru to Quito, Ecuador. The weather here is highly variable, we´ve had a mix of rain and sunshine both days we´ve been here. Quito means middle of the Earth, because the Indians have known for a long time that they were on the equator.

Today started with a concert from a school for the physically (blind, deaf) and mentally (downs syndrome) handicapped. They played a number of Ecuadorian and classical tunes and were quite good, especially one of the blind keyboard players.

We then visited both the historical and the ´´new´ equator. The historical equator was determined by a team of French mathematicians, who spent 7 years trying to determine the equator here in the 1750´s. The new equator is about 300 feet to the North as determined by GPS. We conducted some experiments like trying to get a raw egg to stand vertically and watching how water drained from a tub (straight down, instead of in a counter clockwise direction).

We saw our first real shrunken head. The practice only discontinued a couple of decades ago in the Amazon portions of Peru and Ecuador. They were worn on your belt, after you had defeated an enemy, much like scalps for our Indians. They shrink the head by removing all the bones, putting a stone inside the head and drying it out.

Ecuador is poorer than Peru was. Average income is $500 per month. Education is free, but not compulsory. Everyone learns two languages: in the country your native language and Spanish, in the city Spanish and English. At least here, women have been educated and able to vote since the 1920s. All their schools have 2 shifts: 7 AM to 1 PM, and then 1 PM to 7 PM to make better use of the facilities. It was surprising to learn that 45% of the population is mixed, 40% pure Native, 10% black, and only 5% white.

After a typical lunch: potato soup with avocado and tomatoes, pork with corn and potatoes, and fruit desert, we went to the Colonial part of the city. Here we visited the Jesuit church - almost pure gold. They just completed last year, a 30 year restoration project, so the church just sparkles with the gleam of gold.