Quito Ecuador sits high in the Andes near the equator

QUITO, Ecuador -- Ecuador's capital city is the stopping point for tourists on their way to both the Amazon and to the Galapagos Islands.

It is directly on the equator.

And it will take your breath away. Literally.

At 9,200 feet above sea level, it is the second highest capital city in the world (after La Paz, Bolivia). It is on a vast plateau in the Andes.

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It's also romantic, especially if you are the flower-bestowing, colonial architecture-loving type.

In Quito, a dozen long-stem roses are $3 and a dozen short-stem roses are $1 -- because just outside of town is the massive rose-growing industry.

One of the most beautiful churches in the New World, Iglesia de La Compania de Jesus, is in old town Quito. The entryway and interior are completely covered in gold and gold leaf; the effect is like walking into a Fabergé egg. The Jesuits began building the Baroque-Moorish-style church in the 1600s, but it took centuries of riches and renovations for it to look this fabulous.

Nearby on Plaza Grande, look up to El Panecillo hill to see a lovely statue of what looks like a winged angel. It is the 1976 Virgin of Quito -- not an angel, but a representation of the Virgin Mary as depicted in the Book of Revelation.

Nature's tricks
For me, the coolest things in Quito were its two parks devoted to the equator. About 35 minutes north of downtown, the Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World) memorial commemorates the achievement of French scientists in the early 1700s. They used measurements to pinpoint the equator and prove that the Earth is not a perfect sphere, but slightly flattened at the poles. The site contains a grand pyramid-shaped monument and beautiful grounds.

A few hundred yards away, the Intinan Solar Museum claims to be the exact GPS measurement-confirmed equator, and it's really the most fun. Visitors get to participate in science experiments showing how to balance an egg on its end at the tip of a nail on the equator line. Similarly, you can do the sink test. If the little sink is exactly on the equator, the water goes straight down. If it is moved north of the equator, the water swirls counter-clockwise, just like water in your toilet at home. If the sink is moved south of the equator, the water swirls clockwise. The difference? The rotation of the earth and its magnetic pull, the guide says.

I saw the demonstration with my own eyes. I believed it.

However, the Coriolis force that causes cyclones to spin in different directions in the northern and southern hemispheres does not affect such tiny bodies of water, scientists insist, so the sink test is a trick. (One online discussion of the phenomenon prompted one anxious person to write: "I am very worried. My upstairs bathroom clearly sits in a different hemisphere than my downstairs cloakroom, as the (water) spins in different directions to each other!")

Ah, well. I still liked the demonstration. Check out the video and judge for yourself:
• Northern hemisphere
• Directly on the Equator
• Southern Hemisphere

Quito is in the high Andes -- and is also surrounded by them. If you fly east to the Amazon from Quito, you will fly past the Cayambe and Cotopaxi volcanoes. On a clear day, you can see their snow-covered peaks. They are a brilliant contrast to the lush Amazon you will descend to on the other side of the mountains.

Contact Ellen Creager: 313-222-6498 or ecreager@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter, @ellencreager

More Details: If you go
Getting there: Fly to Quito from Detroit through Houston, Atlanta or Miami on Delta or United.

Lodging: If price is no object, try the new Hotel Casa Gangotena ( www.casagangotena.com, $375 and up) or the Hotel Plaza Grande ( www.plazagrandequito.com, $450 and up); otherwise try the Mercure Grand Alameda ( www.mercure.com, $59 and up) or the Hilton Colon ( www.hilton.com, $79-up). Some Amazon tours include Quito hotels and guides.

The equator: About 35 minutes north of the city center. Mitad del Mundo commemorates the 1700s Geodesic Mission and the equator; the Intinan Solar Museum is on the actual equator line.

Other Quito highlights: Most tourists visit just two days before heading to the Amazon or the Galapagos, but it is enough time to get a taste of the city. I also like the Basilica of the National Vow with its sunburst side altar. For quick shopping, try handicraft shopping at La Mariscal Craft Market behind the Hilton for leather goods, carvings and clothing.

Altitude sickness: Give yourself time to adjust to the 9,200-foot altitude. Drink lots of water. Take it easy. Some say ginger candy helps with dizziness and nausea.

For more: www.quito.com; it has great downloadable brochures. For Quito and Equator tours, contact Kleintours, www.kleintours.com, 888-810-6909.

More Details: A dollar saved

QUITO, Ecuador -- Americans never liked them. So where did all those unpopular Sacajawea dollar coins go? Ecuador.

A flop since it debuted in the U.S. in 2000, the coin is well-loved in Ecuador, which officially uses U.S. currency.

In 2002, the U.S. Federal Reserve exported millions of the scorned Sacajawea dollars to this small nation. Now, people use them as easily as quarters. They're faded and well-used, whether you are deep in the Amazon or at a souvenir stand in the Galapagos.

So even if the American-Indian explorer isn't treasured in the U.S. by coin users, she does have big fans in this tiny South American country.

Update on M/Y Coral I & II 2012 itineraries:

The M/Y Coral I & II have been recently assigned by the Galapagos National Park a new Island in the itinerary a new visit of one of the highlights in the Galapagos "North Seymour"; an approximately two hour walk amidst large nesting colonies of blue-footed boobies*, magnificent and great frigatebirds*, and swallow-tailed gulls for an in depth encounter with sea bird breeding cycles and as well as sea lions. You will also encounter sea lions, land iguanas, and on a lucky day, you might even come across a Galapagos Snake, only for this visit the M/Y Coral I & II will not be sailing together. Itineraries A and D have been also modified changing the order of the visits for the Charles Darwin Station and The Highlands. Attached you will find the revised itinerary with the new sites in red. lucky day, you might even come across a Galapagos Snake, only for this visit the M/Y C

Chaski Route - Magdalena Karanki Community 2nd Anniversary

The Kichwa- Karanki indigenous community of Magdalena is located at approximately 9,842 feet above sea level at the slopes of the Imbabura Volcano with a most privileged location surrounded by valleys and lagoons, home to Atahualpa, the last of the Inca Emperors. It is immersed in this remarkably breathtaking pastoral setting that the Karanki keep the same harmonious relationship with their environment they've kept for centuries, tending to their livestock,cultivating their land and enjoying the clear mountain air.

Kleintours has developed a social and community-based tourism project to help them improve their living conditions by creating jobs and promoting ethnotourism. We have adequate comfortable double and triple rooms for 27 guests with private facilities so tourists who want to participate in their cultural traditions can lodge with them and enjoy exquisite meals prepared with the crops of the land and the sumptuous mornings of the magnetic Ecuadorian Andes.
We would like to deeply thank you our partners who trust in our project and for those who would like to be part of this unique experience feel free to contac us and join our scheduled fam trips along the year including this great project and our Galapagos cruises.

What's going on in Galapagos during May?

• Waved albatross lay eggs on Española Island.
• Blue-footed boobies begin their world-known courtship.
• Weather: fine and clear.
• Air temperature 60° - 80°F / 16° - 27° C.
• Water temperature 69° -74° F / 21° - 23° C.