N = int(input())
B = list(map(int, input().split()))
M, P = [0] * (N - 1), [0] * (N - 1)
for i in range(N - 1):
    if B[i] < B[i + 1]:
        P[i] = 1
    elif B[i] > B[i + 1]:
        M[i] = 1
Mc, Pc = [0] * N, [0] * N
for i in range(N - 1):
    Mc[i + 1] = Mc[i] + M[i]
    Pc[i + 1] = Pc[i] + P[i]
    
ans = 0
for i in range(N):
    v1 = min(Mc[i], Pc[N - 1] - Pc[i])
    v2 = min(Pc[i], Mc[N - 1] - Mc[i])
    ans = max(ans, v1, v2)
print(ans)