The middle of it all.

The Middle of It All

Ecuador's latest marketing slogan for foreign investment is "Ecuador,
The Center of the World." For the record, 0[degrees] latitude meets
0[degrees] longitude in the Atlantic Ocean, 1,078 kilometers west of
Gabon, Africa. But that has never stopped anyone before.

Place                  Slogan

Rome                   Orbis Terrarum
(12 A.D.)

Isla de Pascua,        Te Pito O Te Henua
Chile                  (The world's navel)

World Trade Center,    The Center of the World
New York

Paris                  Centre du Monde

Xocen,                 U chumukil yok'ol kab
Yucatan, Mexico        (The center of the world)

Felicity,              The Center of the World
California (pop. 2)

Place                  Claim to fame

Rome                   Earth reflects the heavens (thus the map is
(12 A.D.)              round), and Egypt is the portal between them
                       Chileans say the moon dips closer to Isla de

Isla de Pascua,        Pascua, a.k.a. Easter Island, than anywhere
Chile                  else in the world

World Trade Center,    250,000 people a day either worked or
New York               visited the Twin Towers; it had its own zip
                       code, 10048 (now general for New York City)

Paris                  1919 Treaty of Versailles created countries
                       from whole cloth; French is the global
                       language of diplomacy

Xocen,                 For Mayans, the main city is considered the
Yucatan, Mexico        center. Once, the title belonged to Chichen
                       Itza nearby

Felicity,              Recognized (somehow) by the French
California (pop. 2)    National Geographic Institute, General
                       Dynamics Corp., and Chinese government

Place                  Noted

Rome                   An exercise in willful contortion,
(12 A.D.)              the map puts Rome at the center

Isla de Pascua,        Crazy moai statues, alien myths,
Chile                  the only developed writing in
                       Oceania. The place is the center
                       of something all right

World Trade Center,    Gone, sadly, due to 9/11 terror
New York               attacks; amazingly, only 2,749 died
                       in the double-airliner bombings

Paris                  Easily the biggest tourism draw
                       on the planet (77 million a year,
                       11% of total travel)

Xocen,                 Mayan is still the main language
Yucatan, Mexico

Felicity,              Visit, and you'll get a "I Visited The
California (pop. 2)    Center Of The World" certificate
                       from the mayor of Felicity