On 1st June (bloody hell, can't believe how quickly time flies) we left the thriving metropolis of Otavalo and headed for Quito, stopping off at the equator on the way. It's called 'la midad del mundo' (the middle of the earth) and, perhaps stupidly, I didn't even put 2 an 2 together that 'Ecuador' means equator in Spanish. Duh! Of course it does (if you think about it!).

The original equator line was drawn in the 1700s and that served as the official marker until around 12 years ago when the US navy came in with their GPS equipment and discovered it was 200m further over (north I think).

Another thing I just didn't think about (no reason to really is there?) is that you can see all of the star constellations from both the northern and southern hemispheres on the equator (well, it's in t'middle innit?). For my southern friends, it's now time for me to say farewell to the Southern Cross (that's the only one I remember I'm afraid although I do recollect Michelle going on about an emu walking on the horizon or something like that! Maybe I was pissed?) as I head back to the north and the stars I'm used to (not that I know any of them - must learn at some point!)

Anyhooo, we went to a rather odd museum that seemed to have more to do with native tribes than the equator but we did get to see and do some of the renowned experiments that only work on the equator (or so they'll have you believe - aah, the sceptic soul!). We first watched the water swirling 'trick' This shows that when you are directly on the equator line, water travels directly downwards, a metre into the southern hemisphere it travels clockwise and a metre in the northern hemisphere it travels anticlockwise. They used little leaves to demonstrate this so you could see it clearly. Now, call me an old cynic (bah humbug!) but I really find it hard to believe that being 1m away from what is effectively an imaginary line can have such a dramatic effect and it has already been proven (I think I read somewhere) that the coriolis effect doesn't work so close to the equator - you have to be further away. Now, I reckon the guide was making the water spin in a certain direction but I still can't fathom how it was just going straight down on the line - spooky!

The 2nd experiment was to do with muscle power. You got someone to clasp their hands together and raise their arms above their head. You then had to push down on their hands while they tried to resist. Off the line they 'won' but on the line they appeared to be a lot weaker and unable to resist their arms being pushed down. Equally, you got them to push their thumb and index finger together and you tried to prise them apart. Again, off the line impossible but on the line they were weaker. There are various theories on how this works - is it simply muscle fatigue or does it also involve the power of suggestion (ie they are psychologically not able to resist the force and you are perhaps not trying so hard the 1st time around)? Who knows eh? It's an interesting experiment to do off the equator and see if you achieve the same results.

The 3rd experiment involved balancing a raw egg on top of a nail. Now this one I am sceptical about as there was no attempt to balance it off the equator so I'm guessing it's possible anywhere in the world. All of the guides could do it and obviously nobody in the public could so my theory is that a) there must be some knack to it like how you stand, where the yolk is inside the egg, which part of the egg you touch etc and b) it involves a hell of a lot of practice. I'm not buying that trick I'm afraid.

Ah, in case you think I really am a miserable old stig in the mud, apparently if you take your own GPS to the equator area, everyone gets a slightly different reading as to exactly where it is so, back to what i said before, I can't see how standing 1m either side of it can have such an impact. So there!

After our middle of the earth experience we arrived in Quito, which means just that. It's official name is actually San Francisco de Quito, it's Ecuador's 2nd largest city after the port city of Guayaquil and it's the 2nd highest capital city in world (after la Paz). It was also the world's first city to be named a Unesco world heritage site. Now you know what I generally think of those?!!

We were staying in the New Town. God only knows why as, despite being where all the bars and restaurants are, it's pure dodgeville! The next street to ours is home to a well-known gang who mug foreigners and we were advise to take a taxi at night even if only going 1 block. Nice. I took my laundry 2 blocks and there were definitely some dodgy characters hanging around so I took Vee along with me to collect it (not that we would have been much use against them!). I decided to go back to my Rio plan and carry 4 sets of money - some stuffed down my bra, some loose in a pocket, some in my money belt and some in an actual purse so that, should I get mugged, I would be unlikely to lose all of it!

That night I took a cab over to the Old Town to have dinner with Michelle as she had just got back from the Galapagos. We went to a great little restaurant that had a super rooftop terrace (very romantic with the right person - no offence Michelle!), sat down, got our menus and then the huge raindrops started. Within seconds it was pissing it down so everyone scurried downstairs carrying their drinks and plates of food. We had a great night - it was the old Michelle that we all know and love and I was able to be myself, have a long time coming moan and just generally relax.

On Wednesday, I slept fairly late and then took myself into the Old Town for a mooch. Despite the pissing rain, it was a definite improvement on the area we were staying in - cobbled streets, beautiful old churches and buildings (one church was just full of gold - I managed to take a few sneaky pics!) and the odd shop ad cafe here and there. I was there for a good few hours, walked for miles and got soaked and freezing! I then decided this was a good opportunity to get my toes done and try and find a hairdresser (that dreaded time of putting my blond hair into the hands of someone who's probably never even seen blonde hair before, let alone tried to dye it). There were a lot of salons but they were all empty until I came across a place that was like a production line - churning people in and out in minutes! I went in for a pedicure and they did a good job so I made an appointment for a haircut the following morning (repeatedly asking if they knew how to dye blonde hair - well, I think that's what I was asking but sometimes it's hard to know if what you're saying in limited Spanish and what they're hearing is the same thing!). In the evening, Vee and I ventured a few streets away (alone - shock, horror - and we survived!!) to a fabulous restaurant called El Boca del Lobo (which I forgot to look up but I think means the wolf's mouth) that had been recommended by the LP as being ultra-hip and trendy (that's me - ha ha!). It was wonderful - funky decor and atmosphere and a fantastic menu with very different dishes - so hard to choose. I had a grilled chicken salad that came with 2 different sauces and a dried, crispy stack of figs - deeeeeelicious! Early night after that so no stories (everyone bar me had been out the night before til the wee hours (well actually the late hours) of the morning so were knackered).

On Thursday morning I went to the hair salon with a light feeling of trepidation. Shouldn't have worried -perfectly acceptable dye and possibly one of the best haircuts I've ever had - despite the fact it only took her about 5 minutes and it looked like she was just hacking at it! Phew! Vee and I then packed up and headed to our next hotel (we were starting our Galapagos trip with Gap). Wow, this is more like it. A 5* hotel. Even the taxi driver was reluctant to drop us there as he kept asking if we really meant that hotel (we must look really scummy - how very dare he!). Anyway, lovely place - 2 double beds in a huge room, big outdoor pool area, my kind of place and actually, a bit of what I've been craving I think as I haven't had my promised bimonthly luxury stop for a long time.

We then headed to the TeleferiQo which is a cable car system that take you up an old volcano for a vista of the city. It was pretty good although the cloud descended as we started going up. Not much at the top so we came back down and stopped off at an American-style shopping mall for some lunch and a quick window-shop. Ecuador is definitely more switched on than a lot of the other countries we've been to recently and there is clearly some money in Quito as this place had a lot of designer boutiques and funky stores. We then vegged in front of the TV before going to our Gap welcome meeting, discovering that there are only 4 of us on this tour (us and 2 older kiwi ladies) although there should be others on the actual boat as it's a charter! I then started to get very excited as I realised how close I was to getting to the destination of my dreams. Of course, I've told Vee that she is effectively sharing my honeymoon with me as I always thought I would go to the Galapagos for it! As that prospect seems to have been getting increasingly unlikely, I decided to just go alone! Duffel bags and stylish (not) Gap T-shirts in hand (that we were instructed to wear for the journey the next day - oh no!), we then trundled off to the hotel bar to see the view before ordering room service (just because we could!) and watching some good old BBC. Aaaaah, this is going to be good!