Peru, country in west central South America, 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. The area of Peru, including several offshore islands, is 1,285,216 sq km (496,225 sq mi), making it third in size (after Brazil and Argentina) of South American countries. Lima is the country’s capital and chief commercial center.

Peru has a divided society in which the wealthy and mainly European elites have long dominated its more numerous population of indigenous people and mestizos (those of mixed European and indigenous ancestry). The indigenous people are descendants of the Inca, who ruled an extensive South American empire centered in the Peruvian highlands before they were conquered by Spaniards in the 16th century. Attracted by the gold and silver mines of the Andes, the Spaniards quickly converted Peru into the seat of their wealth and power in South America. The sharp class and ethnic divisions that developed during the colonial period persist to this day.

The largest city in Peru is Lima (greater city population, 1996 estimate, 6,884,000), the country’s capital and chief commercial center. Other important cities include Callao (424,294), a major port located near Lima; Arequipa (710,103), an industrial center; Trujillo (603,657), a commercial center; Chiclayo (375,058), in the sugar district; and Cuzco (278,590), famous for its Inca ruins.

Cusco (also spelt Cuzco with a "z"), mythical capital of the Inca Empire, preserves its stonewalls and battlements with pride, evoking the greatness of the "Children of the Sun". It's a city packed full of historical monuments and relics, of myths and legends, which seem to come to life every time you walk through its century old streets.

At 3,360 meters above sea level, in the Huatanay valley of the southeastern Andes of Peru, visiting Cusco is an unforgettable experience, as it allows you to uncover some of the mysteries of the Incas, because Cusco was the center, the "navel" of the Andean world.

The history of the Imperial City, the legend goes, begins in the 11th or 12th century when the first Inca, Manco Capac, obeying the dictates of the Sun God, founded Cusco. On March 23, 1534, Francisco Pizarro, the Spanish conquistador of Peru, refunded the Inca city as a Spanish colonial settlement.

Today, Cusco, the archaeological capital of Peru and America, is a city open to the world, warmly welcoming its many visitors. Visitors marvel at the city's unusual physical appearance, which uniquely and harmoniously integrates, in the same urban environment, pre-Colombian monuments such as the Korikancha, ("Temple of the Sun"), the Ajlla Wasi, the Amaru Cancha ("Fence of the Serpent"), and the Kiswar Kancha, amongst others, with "mestizo" (mixed Spanish and native) architectural gems such as Cusco Cathedral, the Church and Convent of La Merced and the Temple of San Blas. The city of Cusco is surrounded by impressive archaeological remains such as the citadel of Machu Picchu, the fortress of Sacsayhuaman, the Ollantaytambo compound and picturesque towns such as Pisaq, Calca and Yucay, which still preserve the traditions of their ancestors.