Ecuador was named after the Spanish word for “equator“.

Almost every tourist who makes it to Quito visits the (somewhat cheesy) Ciudad Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World City).

The grounds contain the Monument to the Equator, which highlights the exact location of the Equator.

The placement of the equatorial line was defined throughout a 1736 expedition called the French Geodesic Mission.  They were astonishing close — only incorrect by 240 metres (790 ft). 

Most interesting was a demonstration of the Coriolis force. I’d always heard stories about the “coriolis effect” ➙ water draining in different directions in the northern and southern hemispheres.

BUT I was shocked to see it with my own eyes with the draining water only about 2m on either side of the equator line.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

A great trick. I was fooled.

As you would intuit, the Coriolis force does not work on small bodies of water anywhere on earth.

The guide pours the water in a certain way to cause the direction of drain.

I enjoyed my 2nd chocolate tour over the past few months. A fascinating story.

You could certainly skip Ciudad Mitad del Mundo. But I’m glad I went. The parklike setting is well done.