Peru: a country with every kind of tourist resource Peru is one of very few countries whose inventory of tourism resources includes every type recognized by the world tourism specialists:

(1) natural locations, with a variety of eco-systems and a high degree of biodiversity in world terms; it is one of the few countries in the world that can offer the traveler sun and beaches, snow sports, and adventure in the tropical jungle at any time of year;

(2) historical structures that show the signs of civilization from paleolithic times through various stages of Andean cultures until they reached their prime in the grand buildings of the Incas;

(3) folklore, with expressions of dance, music, gastronomy and crafts that are unique to each one of the regions;

(4) remarkable human achievements such as the temples and fortresses built at high altitudes (Chavin, Kuelap, Machu Picchu), the mysterious Nazca Lines, and colonial churches;

(5) programmed events in which visitors can participate, such as the case of many popular festivals – Corpus Christi in Cuzco or the Virgen de la Candelaria in Punowhich are held at different times throughout the year.

NATURAL BIODIVERSITY

Peru has a wide variety of climates, eco-systems and production zones. Of the 117 life zones known in the world, 84 are found in Peru. Of the 32 types of climate on earth, 28 are found in Peru. Thirteen per cent of the Amazon tropical forests are in Peru, and Peru ranks eighth in the world for total forest area.   The Colca and Cotahuasi canyons, in Arequipa, vie for first place as the deepest on earth. The largest river in the world, the Amazon, begins in Peru and much of the world's highest navigable lake, Titicaca, is within Peruvian territory.   Peru is one of only 12 countries in the world that rank as areas of biological megadiversity. There are almost 25,000 species of plants (10% of the world total)

, of which 30% are found only in Peru. In wildlife,it ranks top in diversity of fish (2,000 species, equal to 10% of the world's species), first in birds(1,816 species, including the condor), third in amphibians (379 species, including the black cayman), third in mammals (462 species, including the ocelot and the black spectacled bear), and first in butterflies.

It ranks second in the world for its variety of primates, with 35 species, including the unique woolly yellowtailed monkey. There are 460 species of mammals that are catalogued as original to Peru, 1,745 species of birds, 297 species of reptiles, 332 amphibians, 1,800 ocean and fresh water fish, and thousands of species of mollusks, spiders and insects. The following crops are some of the species original to Peru: achira, achiote, a variety of hot peppers including ají and rocoto, cotton, caigua, caimito, sweet potato, camu camu, cañihua, cantuta, custard apple, coca, cocona, eucaris lily, passionflower fruit, guanabana,guarana, guava, heliotrope, huacatay, kiwicha, lucuma, maca, passion fruit, mashua, oca, olluco, pacae, turmeric, lima beans, potato, papaya, sweet cucumber, quinine bark, quinoa, tarwi, tumbo, prickly pear, manioc, squash.

Besides being home to such a great number of unique species, biologists consider Peru to be "the Noah's Ark of modern times" because it also has a great variety of species that are regional, continental and universal, and in exceptionally large numbers. Some 800 species of birds can be observed within one square kilometer of forest (less than a square mile) in the Madre de Dios jungle, double that of all Europe and North America. The offshore islands, known as the guano islands, are home to the greatest density of marine fowl on the planet, and can be counted in the millions. Additionally, the ocean of Peru is one of the world's seven major fish habitats, with the largest biomass and diversity of fish resources available.

A CENTER OF CULTURAL DISSEMINATION

The ancient inhabitants of this territory began domesticating animals around 6,000 B.C., and to develop farming even earlier around 8,500 B.C. This process was simultaneous on the coast, in the Andes and in Amazonia.In fact, the Andean area which we call ancient Peru - where the cultures of Chavin, Tiahuanaco, Cajamarca, Recuay, Moche, Chimu, Lambayeque,Paracas,

Chincha, Nazca and Wari developed and were later joined under the Inca Empire- is one of the world's first and greatest agricultural centers and one of the major areas from which universal culture spread, together with Mesopotamia, China, India and Mesoamerica.

Peru has contributed the potato and corn to world nutrition, which together with wheat and rice are mankind's four basic foods. As a result of its rich heritage, Peru is today one of the world's most culturally diverse countries.. There are 14 linguistic groups and at least 44 different ethnic groups, each with clearly defined traditions and cultural traits, 42 of which are in Amazonia. These ethnic groups possess important knowledge on the uses and properties of plants and animals and know how to use a great variety of agricultural genetic resources.

MUSIC & DANCE

Recent archaeological discoveries of musical instruments show that music in Peru dates back at least 6,000 years. This long-running tradition has given rise to native instruments such as flutes, pan pipes, pututos (a conchlike trumpet) and a wide variety of other wind instruments made from cane, clay, bone, animal horns and precious metals, plus a host of percussion instruments.

Contact with the Western world added an even wider variety of instruments, many of which have been creatively adapted to the rhythmic and tonal needs of each region around the country. The clearest example of this can be seen in the countless transformations to be found of the harp, violin and guitar in the Peruvian highlands. The fusion of Andean and Western traditions in Peru has given birth to over 1,300 musical rhythms. Two of these rhythms, however, have spread beyond their regional confines and have become veritable symbols of Peru's identity: the huayno and the marinera.

A blend of joy and nostalgia, the huayno has become the basis of contemporary musical rhythms because of its simple yet flexible musical structure. The marinera, on the other hand, is not the basis of any other genres like the huayno is, but it has clearly marked variations on the coast and in the highlands, and its pretty melodies and stirring choreography have made it enormously popular all over the country. The festive strength of African immigrants has also contributed to enriching the local musical scene, as creators of the cajón (a box-shaped drum) and the use of the donkey jawbone as a percussion instrument. The jungle is also home to a wide variety of rhythms, dances and instruments linked to local festivals and rituals.

One example is the use of the semiotic trunkshaped drum called manguaré, which serves to send messages over vast distances in the jungle. Today, Peru continues to assimilate new instruments -synthesizers, electric guitars, drums and harmonicasand this creates new musical genres such as the Andean cumbia and the chicha. It also allows Peruvian music to absorb new influences and spread beyond the limits reserved traditionally for folk music to the wider boundaries of national and international sounds. This capacity for musical fusion and innovation is the living expression of the integrating force and dynamic character of Peruvian culture.

GASTRONOMY

In Peru one can try a different dish every day of the year. The encounter of European and Andean foods, and African and Asian as well, has created a unique blend that is the essence of Peruvian cooking and a part of its folklore. Each of the 25 regions has dishes with its own characteristics and ingredients : fish cebiche from Lima, potato in Huancayo sauce, Chiclayo duck with rice,

shrimp chowder of Arequipa, Chincha's dry soup;the Amazon's chicken juane and the incomparable Andean three-meat pachamanca, are just a sampling of the variety of dishes that make Peruvian cuisine one of the world's finest.

There are also many international dishes that have been adapted to Peruvian seasoning to make new variations, such as minestrone, Italian-style tripe, and Chinese fried rice. There are also a number of regional liquors, of which the most important is pisco, a white grape brandy distilled from fresh local grapes. Pisco is part of Peru's history and has helped to forge the nation's identity. It was declared a National Heritage and Appellation Controllee in 1995. It is the basis for pisco sour, Peru's signature cocktail.

FESTIVALS

Peru celebrates over 1,000 festivals in the year. Most are organized to render homage to a patron saint and are part of the Christian calendar imposed during the Spanish vice-regency, although they have been carefully adapted to the mystical beliefs prevalent in every region.

Apart from the religious festivals, there are other pagan festivities such as those linked to ancient myths in native jungle communities and the dozens of festivals created over the centuries and even more recently. A traditional fiesta in Peru is an opportunity for sacred and profane elements to come together in a single show of pride, vitality and happiness.

ARTS & CRAFTS

Peru features some of the most varied handicrafts in the world, as can be seen from the growing network of exporters who exhibit the best of Peru's arts and crafts in markets in Europe, Asia and North America. The diversity, colorful and creative aspects and multiple uses of Peru's handicrafts have made it fundamental not just to build Peru's cultural identity but also as a vital source of income for thousands of families and even entire towns on the coast and in the highlands and jungle.The high standards of Peruvian craftsmen can be found in the harmonious geometric designs in textiles, the detailed portraits of farming life in the carved gourds (mates burilados) and the colorful cultural mix of the retablo boxed scenes.

But there is also the unusual cosmic vision of Shipibo designs, the fine alabaster stone carvings of Huamanga, the beauty found in gold and silver jewelry and the multiple creations formed in pottery. These art forms are just some of the manifestations of a people who communicate mainly through their art, using a language whose fundamental expressions.