Tourist places

Machu Picchu:

Machu Picchu (Quechua: Machu Picchu) – "Old Mountain", pronounced [ˈmɑ.t͡ʃu

ˈpix.t͡ʃu]) is a pre-Columbian Inca site located 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea
level.[1][2] It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Urubamba Valley in Peru, which
is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cuzco and through which the Urubamba River
flows. Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca
emperor Pachacuti (1438–1472). Often referred to as "The Lost City of the Incas", it is
perhaps the most familiar icon of the Inca World.

The Incas started building the estate around AD 1400 but it was abandoned as an
official site for the Inca rulers a century later at the time of the Spanish conquest of the
Inca Empire. Although known locally, it was unknown to the outside world before
being brought to international attention in 1911 by the American historian Hiram
Bingham. Since then, Machu Picchu has become an important tourist attraction.

Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO
World Heritage Site in 1983.[2] Since it was not plundered by the Spanish when they
conquered the Incas, it is especially important as a cultural site and is considered a
sacred place.

Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its
primary buildings are the Intihuatana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three
Windows. These are located in what is known by archaeologists as the Sacred District
of Machu Picchu. In September 2007, Peru and Yale University reached an agreement
regarding the return of artifacts which Hiram Bingham had removed from Machu
Picchu in the early twentieth century.
The Nazca Lines:

The Nazca Lines are a series of ancient geoglyphs located in the Nazca Desert of Peru.
They have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The high, arid plateau
stretches more than 80 kilometres (50 mi) between the towns of Nazca and Palpa on the
Pampas de Jumana. Although some local geoglyphs resemble Paracas motifs, scholars
believe the Nazca Lines were created by the Nazca culture between 200 BCE and 700
CE. The hundreds of individual figures range in complexity from simple lines to
stylized hummingbirds, spiders, monkeys, fish, sharks or orcas, llamas, and lizards.

The lines are shallow designs made in the ground by removing the ubiquitous reddish
pebbles and uncovering the whitish ground beneath. Hundreds are simple lines or
geometric shapes; more than seventy are designs of animal, bird, fish or human figures.
The largest figures are over 200 metres (660 ft) across. Scholars differ in interpreting
the purpose of the designs, but they generally ascribe religious significance to them, as
they were major works that required vision, planning and coordination of people to
achieve.

The geometric ones could indicate the flow of water or be connected to rituals to
summon water. The spiders, birds, and plants could be fertility symbols. Other possible
explanations include: irrigation schemes or giant astronomical calendars.[1]

Due to the dry, windless and stable climate of the plateau and its isolation, for the most
part the lines have been preserved. Extremely rare changes in weather may temporarily
alter the general designs.