The middle of the world

Ever wondered how to shrink a head?? Ya me either but here are the instructions just in case you decide you might be into that sort of thing. Step 1-12 is all it takes and you too can shrink heads!! The above shrunken head (of a child mind you) is 155 years old.



While we were in Quito we decided to take a trip to the middle of the world, latitude zero. If you don't believe me just try draining water right on the line of the equator. No spinning what so ever but if you try it a foot to the north it spins counter clockwise and a foot to the south clockwise!!! It's crazy and I wish I had videoed it so I could show you but unfortunately I didn't and the pictures don't do it justice, also uploading video here is nearly impossible due to how slow the internet is.




This is Jimmy on the street in Quito just being a rock star with his new glasses :) The hostel is amazing, we have stayed there three times and it's cozy and right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of everything (including the below adorable woman selling fruit in the streets). The show was unfortunately canceled due to tax issues so it was a quiet and relaxing evening, I had zero complaints.




They plant the crops all the way up the mountain. It's mostly corn that I've seen being grown but I've heard of potatoes and coffee also among other things. The country side is beautiful but the cities and towns are occasionally quite rough. All though people get by it's hard to watch how trash is thrown to the ground without a second thought and dogs and cats dwindle away to nothing before taking their last breath in the streets. We have all taken to feeding them when we can, even going as far as to carry scraps home with us in case we cross the path of an animal in need, Sarah McLachlan would be proud ;)


I had two Thanksgiving meals in the week before leaving home but I still longed for a piece of pumpkin pie when the day rolled around, don't be jealous of my Thanksgiving meal. Really though, can you actually eat something that looks like that!?? Ugh I lost my appetite just looking at the picture. Even though I have been unimpressed by the food I did have the best veggie burger of my life here, mmmmmmmmm I should have gotten enough to carry with me the rest of the trip.

Tonight I again miss hot showers but most of all good customer service. I waited two and a half hours for my sandwich tonight and still paid for it. If I was able to speak Spanish I'd be giving someone a piece of my mind. We are leaving Montanitas in the morning and I will hopefully be able to post pictures from those days soon. The beach was fun but not as warm as I had hoped, I did put my swimming suit on but I will not be sporting any tan lines to prove it. Even though the water was somewhat warm the weather was not hot enough to entice me.

Congrats to Kirstin and Kiera who have both delivered healthy baby boys, so excited to meet them!