Peru Travel Guide
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Packed with color photographs, illustrations and maps
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In-depth look at the Inca Trail and Amazon Jungle
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Cutaways and floor plans of all the major sights
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Huge selection of hotels and restaurants
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Sights, museums, markets and festivals listed town by town.
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Street-by-street walks and thematic tours
Peru conjures up images of the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, but there's much more to see. Besides archaeological sites, there are several natural treasures, including the world's deepest canyons and the highest navigable lake. Peru is also a racial melting pot, a mix of indigenous peoples, mestizos, and African, Chinese, and Japanese migrants, whose profound cultural influence is everywhere.
At an elevation of 12,500 ft (3,800 m), Lake Titicaca is the highest lake of its size in the world. South America's second largest lake, it covers 3,210 sq miles (8,300 sq km), is 120 miles (194 km) long and 50 miles (80 km) wide at its broadest point. Its water level flucuates according to the seasons, receding slightly in winter. numberous islands are sprinkled across the lake, and the inhabitants cling to a traditional way of life centered around fishing, farming, and weaving. The Uros people live closest to Puno, on floating islands, like huge straw-like nests. They describe their buoyant life as living "between water and heaven".
Peru neatly divides into nine regions, each with its own distinct character and landscape. The capital, Lima, lies on the parched coast, hemmed in by the Andes. The other regions include high peaks and glaciers in the Andes, desert landscape in the south, marvelous beaches in the north, and unparalleled biodiversity in the Amazon Basin. The country's architecture stands testament to the great Inca builders and their Spanish conquerors, while numerous monumental ruins reveal how Peru was one of the cradles of civilization in the ancient world.
Putting Peru on the Map
With the Pacific Ocean lapping its 1,500 mile (2,400 km) coast, Peru shares borders with Ecuador and Colombia to the north, Brazil and Bolivia to the east and Chile to the south. The third largest country in Latin America, its 500,000 sq miles (1,300,000 sq km) encompasses soaring mountains, vast canyons, coastal desert, and lush jungles with dozens of microclimates in between. Peru has a population of 27 million, more than half of whom live in coastal areas. Lima, the capital, is home to 8 million people, while a million live in Qrequipa, the second largest city. Other major cities include Trujillo, Piura, Iquitos, Cusco, Cajamarca, Puno, and Ayacucho. |