From my base in Quito Ecuador, I spent the day visiting the Historic Centre and the Middle of the World – Manuel Cordova Galarza, Quito, Ecuador.
I will tell you from the outset I am an in and out traveller in regards to major tourist attractions and both these are no exceptions. I would probably avoid these places on weekends.
Quito’s traffic is insane (even a day after Christmas) and getting around can be a pain the backside, particularly with so many roads closed.
Middle of the World
The Ciudad Mitad del Mundo is a tract of land owned by the prefecture of the province of Pichincha, Ecuador. It is located at San Antoñio parish of the canton of Quito, 26 km north of the centre of Quito.
There are plenty of parking spaces for $1 and entry is $3.50 USD if you just want to walk around. If you want to go inside some of the monuments it is $7.50 USD
I wandered around here for around an hour and a half, some pretty cool stuff, but that’s about all it would take unless you wanted to do some screwing around with some cool photos of being in the middle of the world (which it really isn’t).
Historic Centre of Quito
The Historic Centre of Quito is a smallish Spanish architectural enclave in Quito. It is pretty cool but really busy and tough to park your bike. I had lunch here (some soup) and wandered around for about an hour.
El Panecillo
El Panecillo is a 200-metre-high hill of volcanic origin, with loess soil, located between southern and central Quito. Its peak is at an elevation of 3,016 meters above sea level.
This place feels like it’s not real in many ways, the buildings look a little overdone for historical effect. It has amazing views and a very cool marketplace. It was also where someone tried to steal my Florida Number Plate (Tag)