Facts About Peru
Here you'll find useful facts along with answers
to frequently asked questions (and some fun stuff as well!).
Maps
Let's look at the big picture first by starting with some Maps.
Population
Peru's current population is fast approaching 29
million inhabitants (the official number is
28,220,764 reported by the National Statistics Institute).
October
21st,
2007 - Census day! You'd
remember that
date if you had been here - serious business
in Peru. The government required you to stay in your residence until
counted. You risked a substantial fine by not complying.
 So
most Peruvians
complied!
Even
foreigners and tourists had to be counted. "Stay in your hotel" they
advised.
I was in Lima that day. After the census-taker came at 11 AM, I walked
the normally bustling streets in Miraflores toward Larcomar - the big
mall overlooking the cliffs.
Complete ghost town! The country
came to a halt and business shut down. A city of nearly 10 million
people in the greater metropolitan area just... Disappeared.
Will
Smith walks the streets of New York looking for survivors in "I am
Legend". That's how I felt walking the streets of Lima on Census Day
2007, but without the crazed, flesh-loving zombies chasing me :-)
Detailed Facts and Figures
Want more in depth Peru information?! Click on this
link and you'll learn more about the government, people,
geography and
transportation.
Climate
"Diverse"
best describes the Peruvian
climate.
The Pacific coastline, Andes mountains and Amazon jungle
extend
in a north-south direction, dominating the landscape and producing many
climates and microclimates.
"Intense"
is fitting as well - as in the intense rays of the sun.
Peru
has the highest level of UV (ultraviolet) rays anywhere on the
planet. Modern science has now proven what the sun-worshipping Inca Empire knew along.
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