Bolivia Ninja Gallery

Bolivian communal transport	Driving school in La Paz	Santiago, Cuba	Bolivian bus
Ancient Cities & Artificial Islands Latin America was home to some of the world's grandest civilizations - the Incas, the Mayans and the Aztecs. Peru's lost city of Machu Picchu is one of the ancient world's wonders and is still shrouded in mystery. Its original purpose is still unclear, but it was possibly built as a mountain retreat for the Incan emperor. Viewed from above, the outline of a condor can be seen in its construction. The condor was a sacred animal to the Incas and represented the path to the world above. The city was abandoned before the Spanish arrived and so remained hidden in the mountains. Although it was known to locals, it only came to world attention when it was "rediscovered" by Hiram Bingham in 1911. The Incas hid their secrets so well that other cities have only been discovered recently. The city of Llactapata is within sight of Machu Picchu, but was only discovered in 2003. It was hidden under vegetation. Machu Picchu is now a renowned tourist destination and although accessible by train in a day, it's popular to undertake a two or a four day hike along the Inca Trail to reach the mountain city. There have been many concerns about damage to the site caused by tourism and other commerical use. In 2000, a company filming a beer commercial at Machu Picchu accidentally destroyed one of the city's sundials. The pyramids at Teotihuacan near Mexico City rival those of Egypt in size and grandeur. They were built by a pre-Aztec culture, but the origin of their builders is unknown. The Pyramid of the Sun is linked to the Pyramid of the Moon via a two-kilometre path known as the Avenue of the Dead. The Mayans built wondrous cities in Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala. They include the startling stone pyramids of Tikal, Palenque and Chichen Itza. Tikal, in particular, with its stone pyramids surrounded by dense jungle is a wonderful place to visit. Lake Titicaca borders Peru and Bolivia. Some of the inhabitants have built artificial islands of reed and live on these tiny islands. Some of these so-called floating islands are around 30 meters in diameter and are home to only one or two families.	Machu Picchu	Machu Picchu in the shape of a condor	Machu Picchu
The Inca Trail	Pyramid of the Sun, Teotihuacan, Mexico	Pyramid of the Sun, Teotihuacan, Mexico	Pyramid of the Moon, Teotihuacan, Mexico
Avenue of the Dead, Teotihuacan, Mexico	Palenque, Mexico	Chichen Itza, Mexico	Tikal, Guatemala
Tikal, Guatemala	Floating Islands of Lake Titicaca	Floating Islands of Lake Titicaca	Floating Islands of Lake Titicaca
The Beautiful Game Soccer is sometimes called the beautiful game. But sometimes soccer leads to war. Tension had been building between Honduras and El Salvador over trade agreements and the expulsion of Salvadoran refugees from Honduras. These disputes erupted into violent conflict after the countries played three World Cup qualifying games in 1969. Each country accused the other of cheating and of badly treating the visiting team. The two nation's armed forces clashed and several thousand people died in the conflict. Although the so-called Soccer War lasted only a couple of weeks, it took more than ten years before Honduras and El Salvador eventually signed a truce. Soccer games are usually vibrant, lively events in Latin America. In La Paz, spectators are fond of throwing streamers, unfurling giant flags and setting off flares and fireworks. The blue smoke represents the local team's color.	Wildlife The Galapagos Islands are world-renowned for helping to inspire Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The islands lie approximately 1000 kilometres from the coast of Ecuador and their isolation allowed different animals to thrive. The islands are home to the giant Galapagos tortoises, marine iguanas, sea lions and a range of unique birdlife, including the blue-footed booby. Venezuela was once the stomping ground of a giant species of rodent nicknamed Guinea-Zilla. It lived about 8 million years ago and was the largest rodent ever known. It weighed around 700kgs and was roughly the size of a buffalo. Guinea pigs are a popular delicacy in some South American countries. Peruvians eat around 65 million guinea pigs a year and scientists in Lima recently bred a new low fat "super pig". A little known fact about Che Guevara is that one of his first published articles might have also offended guinea pig owners. His research paper was titled "Sensibilization of Guinea Pigs to Pollens through Injections of Orange Extract." Perhaps even more likely to upset animal lovers is that many citizens of the small Peruvian town of Canete regard cat as a delicacy. Before animal rights organisations had it banned, the town used to hold a "Great Gastronomic Kitty Festival" which included cat-tasting events. One local citizen informed reporters that "street cats are the best. They have more flavour."	Toucan	Anaconda skins
Swimming with caimans

People People in Latin America are much more likely to walk or take public transport than their North American counterparts. This means Latin American cities have a vibrant street culture and there are plenty of opportunities to encounter a wide range of interesting people. La Paz is home to the Bolivian Zebra. La Paz can be a dangerous place for pedestrians. Black-and-white striped "zebra crossings" were introduced a few years ago but most drivers ignored them. In an effort to increase awareness of the importance of pedestrian crossings, the Municipal Government of La Paz introduced "zebras." These are people dressed in black-and-white zebra suits that stop the traffic, allowing pedestrians to cross the road. The zebras are generally popular, but drivers have been known to shout a few unpleasant words in their direction. Some zebras have also been hurt when cars didn't stop in time.		Bolivian girl	Bolivian children
Peru	Mexico	Guatemala	Guatemala