The dramatic Peruvian landscape draws adventurers from the world over. Bounded on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil and Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean, Peru’s land scale raises from seaside to some of the highest peaks in the world.

Peru’s principal natural features are its desert coast; the 40 great snow-covered peaks over 6,000 meters in altitude, and the mountain ranges they anchor. Renown and perhaps most spectacular is Lake Titicaca, which is shared with Bolivia, and at 3,809 meters above sea level, is the world’s highest navigable lake.

Peru has effectively a dual economy with a relatively modern sector on the coastal plains and a predominantly subsistence sector in the sierra.

Where irrigated the river valleys of the coastal desert are extremely fertile and excellent crops of cotton, rice, sugar and fruit are produced on the large agro-industrial estates. Newer crops such as asparagus and broccoli are also proving to be successful. South of Lima, the Ica valley has abundant vineyards.

The expansion of agriculture in this region has been facilitated in part by the the new land laws introduced by President Fujimori. These abolished previously strict limits to the amount of land one person or group could own. There has also been a significant increase in the level of foreign investment in the agroexport sector.

The land of the sierra is generally of poor quality. Some crops such a potatoes, corn , beans, quinoa and aji (hot peppers) are grown and llamas, alpacas and sheep are rasied, all on predominantly subsistence plots. One of the main problems facing the small farmers of the sierra is obtaining credit with which to buy seed or other supplies, a situation made more difficult by the recent closure of the developmenmt banks. The northern department of Cajamarca is known for its dairy produce.

Peru counts 22,5 million inhabitants, of which 7 million live in the capital, Lima. Approximately 45 % of the Peruvians are Indian, 37 % mestizos (mongrel of White and Indians), 15 % of European origin and 3 % kill black slaves or Japanese and Chinese immigrants.

The two official languages are Spanish and the quechua. According to estimates’, 92 % of the Peruvians are catholic, even if the religion whom they practise is still marked by the worships precolombiens. Peru has 2000 km of coasts, the length of which one extends from the most arid deserts of the world. It is however cut by the rivers descended from the Andes, whose irrigated valleys shelter about half of the population.