Famous landmarks in Peru

Peru is a country on the west coast of South America, facing the Pacific Ocean. It borders Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia and Chile, and its capital is Lima. Peru has three very different kinds of land: a dry desert coast, the high Andes mountains and a huge stretch of Amazon rainforest.

Peru is famous as the heart of the Inca Empire and for older cultures too. On the globe you can explore Machu Picchu, the Nazca Lines, the stone walls of Sacsayhuamán and the Qorikancha in Cusco, the mud city of Chan Chan, the striped Rainbow Mountain and Lima's cathedral, as well as alpacas, spectacled bears, sloths and scarlet macaws.

Geography and nature

Along the coast, the cold Humboldt Current keeps the land dry, so much of it is desert, though rich fishing waters lie offshore. Inland, the Andes rise to snowy peaks; Huascarán, at about 6,770 metres, is the highest. Lake Titicaca, shared with Bolivia, is one of the highest large lakes in the world. East of the mountains, rainforest covers more than half the country, and the very first trickles of the Amazon River begin on a Peruvian mountain, Nevado Mismi. Llamas, alpacas and vicuñas graze the high grasslands.

People, languages and culture

Spanish is the main language, and Quechua, the language of the Incas, and Aymara are official too. Millions of Peruvians have Indigenous roots, and traditional weaving, music with panpipes and colourful festivals are still part of life, especially in the Andes. Peru is one of the homes of the potato and grows thousands of kinds. Peruvian food is famous around the world, from ceviche, raw fish 'cooked' in lime juice, to lomo saltado, a stir-fry of beef and potatoes. Most people are Christian.

History in a nutshell

Peru has some of the oldest civilisations in the Americas. Caral was a city about 5,000 years ago. Later the Nazca people drew giant lines in the desert, and the Chimú built Chan Chan. In the 1400s the Incas, ruling from Cusco, built the largest empire in the Americas, with roads stretching thousands of kilometres. Spanish conquerors arrived in 1532 and founded Lima in 1535. Peru declared independence in 1821, and the last big battle against Spain was won in 1824.