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This is the closest point to the moon.
It's right here on planet Earth, and it's not Mount Everest.
It is a mountain in a country where lots of crazy physics happens.
Where is this place?
What happens there?
And how can you be so close to the moon?
Let me take you to one of the most interesting countries in the world.
Welcome to Ecuador.
By the way, in the year 2024, we are taking you, the viewer, to Ecuador.
Yes, Nas Travels is running trips to Ecuador.
If you're interested in seeing this country with your own eyes, fill up this form right here on this link, and we will get back to you very, very fast.
It's going to be very exciting, and you'll get to experience this stuff with your own eyes.
Okay, back to the video.
Ecuador is a country in South America, and it's full of adventure, nature, and really fun people.
But there is also some crazy physics that happens here, like this place.
Now, the following may be exaggerated, but it is designed to make a point about physics.
Here, tourists try to walk on this line, and then they fall.
They pour water down the sink, and on this spot, it doesn't spin to the left or to the right.
It will not spin.
Here we have some leaves, and as you can see, there is not a very big rotation, any vortex, and it is just going straight.
If you stand on this spot at 12 o'clock, your shadow disappears entirely.
No shadows.
And you don't need a watch here, because you can tell the time just from looking at the sun.
But why?
Well, it's all because of this line.
This line separates the planet into two equal parts, the north and the south.
It's called the equator.
And guess what?
Ecuador means equator in Spanish.
As the Earth spins, there is a strong force that pulls out at the equator.
And this means gravity is weaker here.
That's why you can get super close to the moon.
At this mountain, Mount Chimborazo, even though it's not the tallest mountain in the world, it is the closest on Earth that you can get to the moon.
The Earth is taller at the equator.
And that's also why Ecuador has the second highest capital in the world.
And I found out the hard way that life is not easy when you live that high.
Because you're so close to the sun, you can get a sunburn very easy.
And when you're that high up, there is less air and less oxygen.
So cars drive slower, less oxygen.
Batteries die quicker, more work.
And yes, it is harder to breathe.
Ecuador is not just mountains.
It's also islands.
You can take a boat for three days to the middle of the ocean and visit one of the most untouched islands in the world, the Galapagos Islands.
They have more than 9,000 types of animals, like the largest tortoise in the world, the wild marine iguanas, the penguins, and sea lions that hang out with humans.
The Galapagos Islands are so unique, they are the first ever UNESCO heritage site.
And the animals that live there, they don't exist anywhere else in the world.
And the people that live around them are also interesting, like this guy.
Migichu had a broken life from the day he was born, until one day he decided to fix his life.
At age 52, he stopped drinking, he learned how to read, he ate healthy, and he got fit at age 52.
Then he decided to fix the Galapagos Islands, his home.
He got a bag and started picking up cigarette butts from the street.
He picked up one after another after another until he collected one million broken cigarette butts, and he turned them into beautiful art like this.
And there is also Gilda.
Hi, my name is Gilda and I live in the dark.
An Ecuadorian living in the Galapagos Islands.
She lives completely in the dark, no electricity, no trash, no waste.
This is her entire collection of waste.
After three years.
Water she collects from the rain, and the salt I collect from the beach.
That's how sustainable she is.
Ecuador is a mind-blowing place.
From people, to nature, to science,
I cannot recommend this country enough.
So the next time you want to learn about science, animals, or physics, skip the textbooks and come to Ecuador.
