Otherworldly Perú
By Ana Figueroa

Sites to See: Perú

The eyes of the world-and a NASA satellite-are watching the Peruvian Andes.

Above Lake Palcacocha, lies a cracked glacier. If the glacier breaks, a large chunk of it will fall in the lake below, triggering a flood that could reach the city of Huaráz, and its 60,000 residents, in less than 15 minutes.

The scale of the potential devastation is new, but the threat of glacial flood-bursts goes back 300 years. It is ironic that a major natural disaster threatens Perú since, according to conservationist David Bellamy, if we had to rebuild the entire planet after a global cataclysm, the best place to start would be this ancient country.

His conviction is a fitting tribute. Perú, which is on the western coast of South America, has one of the world's most diverse ecosystems. It contains nearly all the climate zones found on earth and boasts an unparalleled array of plants, mammals, birds, fish, and insects. Also within its boundaries lie some of the world's most spectacular archaeological, historical, and cultural treasures. Magnificent Spanish colonial cities: the ancient Inca capital of Cuzco, the fabled Lost City of Machu Picchu, Lake Titicaca, and the mysterious Nazca lines are just some of the wonders to be found.

[Machu Picchu] means “old mountain” in Quechua and is an apt title, for archaeologists believe it was constructed and occupied between 1300 and 1533

Perú is three times the size of California. With the immense Andean wall bisecting the country, people rely on air travel to reach most places, using buses and trains for shorter distances.

Most visits to Perú begin in the country's coastal desert region, with the capital, Lima. The city was founded by Spaniard Francisco Pizarro, after defeating the Incas in 1533, ushering in three centuries of Spanish rule. Dubbed the City of Kings, Lima has a population of over nine million and is known for historical sites, great museums, year-round festivals, and bullfights.

In the historic center, the Plaza Mayor, stand the Cathedral of Lima and nearby, the Government Palace, where a changing of the guard ceremony takes place every weekday at noon. Lima's cultural offerings include the National Art Museum, the National Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology, and the Museum of the Inquisition, built on a site where heretics were tortured. The suburb of Miraflores offers the city's best shopping, as well as the tempting aroma of the distinctive spicy Peruvian cuisine wafting from countless restaurants and cafés.

The Pan-American Highway hugs the Pacific coast, offering a scenic link from Lima to other major cities. Some of Perú's most famous attractions are at high altitudes, but many equally fascinating sights can be found along the coast.

North of Lima lies Trujillo and Chiclayo. Trujillo, a tribute to architectural preservation, is near the clay city of Chan-Chan and other pre-Incan ruins. Chiclayo, a modern city, is close to pre-Incan pyramids (Sicán) and the richest tomb in South America (Sipán). Further up the coast, near the border of Ecuador, are the beautiful beaches at Mancora and Punta Sal, known for warm water and perpetual sun.

South of Lima is the town of Nazca, famous for the mysterious Nazca Lines. The lines are huge designs of animals, insects, and geometric figures created between 900 b.c. and 660 a.d. Visible only from the air, the designs weren't discovered until the early 20th century. Debate about their origins continues to this day. Are the lines an elaborate astronomic calendar? Or, as one author has advanced, was the Nazca plain a landing strip for alien spacecraft?

Behind the coast lies the Andean region, where alpaca and llama herds roam, women wear bowler hats, and the locals speak the Aymara language. The town of Arequipa, in a scenic green valley at the base of a volcano, is known as the White City for the pale volcanic rock used to construct its buildings. Arequipa is noteworthy for the Convent of Santa Catalina and other fine examples of colonial architecture. It is also a starting point for excursions to Colca Canyon, the deepest canyon in the world, and to Lake Titicaca, "the Sacred Lake," which is virtually a freshwater mountain-top sea that Perú shares with Bolivia. At 12,500 feet, it is the highest navigable body of water in the world, and at 105 miles long, it is the largest lake in South America. Puno, its major port, offers water taxis to the Island of the Sun and the Floating Islands of Uros.

Cuzco, once the capital of the Inca Empire, is believed to be the oldest continually inhabited city in the western hemisphere. It is perched nearly 12,000 feet above sea level in the southern Andes. In its heyday, during the early 1500s, Cuzco was as densely populated as any contemporary European city.

When the conquistadors reached Cuzco, they proclaimed it the most marvelous city of the New World, for its paved streets, intricate irrigation system, and mortarless stone walls-all built by the Incas, whose descendants continue to speak the ancient language of Quechua.

Cuzco's Museum of Archaeology contains examples of Inca gold and metal works, jewelry, pottery, and textiles. Each June on the solstice, thousands arrive for Cuzco's famous Inti Raymi festival. But you needn't be in Cuzco on the solstice to see performances by colorfully costumed folk dancers-you can hear musical vestiges of the Inca culture at literally every turn. Musicians collect in the plazas, playing melodies on clay panpipes and flutes that emit an otherworldly whistle.

Northeast of Cuzco is the Sacred Valley of the Incas, with significant ruins, and splendid views of the snow-capped Andes. To the northwest of the city, astride a mountain and overlooking the Urubamba Valley, stands the most famous site in all of Perú, the citadel of Machu Picchu. The name means "old mountain" in Quechua and is an apt title, for archaeologists believe it was constructed and occupied between 1300 and 1533.

Machu Picchu is best seen early in the morning, when the sunlight has yet to burn through the cloud mist clinging to the hillsides. The ruins consist of two main sections. The agricultural area contains the distinctive terraces where the Incas grew crops-such farming being a marvel in itself, considering the altitude. The urban area, or sacred zone, contains the citadel's main plazas, striking granite temples, royal palaces, fountains, and elaborate sunken stairways. Theories abound as to the purpose of the citadel. How the Incas carried huge granite stones up the mountain, and fit them perfectly together to create this mystical city remains one of the world's great mysteries. 

East of the Andes, the Amazon Basin covers 60 percent of the country with rainforest. The city of Iquitos, founded in the late 1500s by the Jesuits and known as the Pearl of the Amazon, became a thriving center of the oil and rubber export trade. Today, its economy depends heavily on tourism. Accessible only by air or water, this remote city is blessed with unique species of plant and animal life.

Here, among the butterflies and wild orchids, one begins to understand why Perú is high on conservationists' lists.

Return to Top