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World Tourism: South America Inca territory. In the period between 1535 and 1537, Argentina,
I. Continent Profile (mapsofworld.com, 2015)
Figure 1 Map of South America (worldatlas.com, 2015)
A. History
South America has a long history, dating back to human
migration across the Bering Land Bridge. By about 1200 BC,
hunters traveled from Asia to Alaska, crossing the Bering Strait
and drifted gradually south. From 1400 to 1550, the indigenous
people of the Inca Empire spread across South America to
regions in modern-day Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Northern
Argentina, and Peru. In 1492, Christopher Columbus
discovered the "New World", and the number of Spanish
explorers increased between 1496 and 1526. In 1533, the
Spanish Army led by Francisco Pizarro had captured much of
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Peru, and Bolivia were founded and by the 18th century, the
Spanish colonies in South America started to make a serious
bid for independence. While fighting wars against France on the
European mainland, Spain began to lose control of its South
American colonies, and by the end of the war in 1814, countries
like Argentina and Venezuela gained their independence from
Spain, and other nations followed suit. In the 20th century,
several South American countries, including Peru and
Venezuela, had held elections for the first time after their
independence.
B. Geography
South America is bound by the Caribbean Sea in the north, the
North Atlantic Ocean in the east and northeast, and by the
South Atlantic Ocean in the southeast. The South Pacific Ocean
borders the continent in the west. In the northwest, the Isthmus
of Panama joins South America with North America. South
America is also home to a stunning variety of landscapes from
desert to rainforest, and from plains to hills.
C. Travel & Tourism
Tourism is another important industry in South America that not
only enhances the GDP of each country, but also ensures
greater job opportunities. The historical sites, architectural
marvels, and the natural landscapes of the continent attract
millions of tourists every year from all across the globe. South
America is a land of diversity. The Amazon Rainforest and
Amazon River, the Atacama Desert, Lake Titicaca, and Angel
Falls of Venezuela are some of the major natural attractions of
South America.
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D. General Information (affairscloud.com, 2015)

Flag Country Capital Language/s Currency

Argentina Buenos Aires Spanish Peso

Bolivia Sucre Spanish, Boliviano (BOB)

Quechua,
Aymara

Brazil Brasilia Portuguese Real (BRL)

Chile Santiago Spanish Peso (CLP)

Colombia Bogota Spanish Peso (COP)

Ecuador Quito Spanish US Dollar

Guyana Georgetown English Guyanese Dollar

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Paraguay Asuncion Spanish, Guarani (PYG)

Guarani

Peru Lima Spanish Nuevo Sol (PEN)

Suriname Paramaribo Dutch Surinamese

Dollar

Uruguay Montevideo Spanish Uruguayan Peso

(UYU)

Venezuela Caracas Spanish Bolivar Fuerte

(VEF)

E. Dos and Donts (traveltaboo.com, 2015)

Country Dos Donts

Peru Shake hands and kiss men and
women once on the cheek for
greeting.
Drink from the same glass. Drinking
from the same glass for the locals in
the mountains is a sign of friendship
and trust.
Expect smaller personal space in
Peru, people get very close to you
when they talk to you.
Chile Be friendly and humble, behave
conservatively whenever possible.
Chileans by nature are friendly, they
dislike arrogance.
Do not use the words indio or
indios to refer to natives.
These words are considered
derogatory.
Do not take pictures of people
without their permission,
especially when taking photos of
indigenous tribes people.
Do not be offended by Chileans
asking personal questions.
Do not sit until told where to sit.
Do not begin eating until the
hostess invites everyone to start

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Keep both hands above the table
throughout the meal and finish
everything on your plate. It is
considered impolite to ask for or
accept second helpings of food.
Colombia Enjoy the kindness and hospitality of
Colombians. It is customary to offer
guests black Colombian coffee, well-
sugared called tinto.
Avoid talking about homosexuality, as
it is not widely accepted or
understood, especially by older
generations.
Argentina Expect a late dinner in Argentina.
People will usually have dinner at 9
pm or 10 pm.
Try yerba mate, which is a national
drink and a cultural ritual as well. The
mate is passed clockwise and shared
as a sign of friendship and
acceptance.
Show up between 30 to 60 minutes
late if invited to a party. Showing up
on time is considered impolite!
Brazil Try to learn some Portuguese as you
can, which will make your vacation
more memorable.
Keep a map and do not let anyone
know you are lost if you are ever
caught in such a situation.
Do not drink until a toast has
been made.
Do not ever say bad words
about the Catholic religion or
Colombia. Most Colombians are
closely bound up with their
identity; to criticize any aspect of
Colombia is to criticize them.
Do not make jokes about drugs
or drug consumption.
Do not whistle to get attention,
which is considered rude.
Do not be offended by Argentine
humor, which can sometimes be
insulting, such as poking fun at
your appearance, weight, or
attire.
Do not eat on the street or on
public transportation.
Do not talk about sensitive
topics about their relationship
with the USA, Brazil or Great
Britain, which could evoke
strong reactions due to the
Falklands War.
Do not make the ok sign with
your hand, which is considered
a very rude gesture in Brazil.

II. Famous Destinations & Events (whc.unesco.org, 2015)

Cultural Natural Events

Machu Picchu (Peru)
Embedded within a dramatic
landscape at the meeting point
between the Peruvian Andes and
the Amazon Basin, the Historic
Sanctuary of Machu Picchu is
among the greatest artistic,
architectural, and land use
achievements anywhere and the
most significant tangible legacy of
the Inca civilization. Recognized for
outstanding cultural and natural
values, the mixed World Heritage
property covers 32,592 hectares of
mountain slopes, peaks, and valleys
Angel Falls (Venezuela)
The falls, first sighted by outsiders
in the 1930s, were named for
James Angel, an American
adventurer who crash-landed his
plane on a nearby mesa in 1937. In
late 2009, Venezuelan Pres. Hugo
Chvez declared that the falls
should be referred to
Kerepakupai Mer, an indigenous
name.
National Grape Harvest
Festival (Argentina) -
Although its origins are religious
in nature, stretching back to the
17th century, the National Grape
Harvest Festival (Fiesta
Nacional de la Vendimia)
officially started in 1936 when
as engineer Frank Romero Day,
the then Minister of Industry and
Public Works in Mendoza,
signed a decree that the grape
harvest would become a social
event as part of the national
agenda. Nowadays, it is

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surrounding its heart, the
spectacular archaeological
monument of La Ciudadela (the
Citadel) at more than 2,400 meters
above sea level.
Rio de Janeiro: Carioca Galapagos Islands (Ecuador) - Los Diablos Danzantes
Landscapes between the Situated in the Pacific Ocean some (Venezuela) - Like many
Mountain and the Sea (Brazil) - 1,000 km from the South American religious festivals, Diablos
The site consists of an exceptional
urban setting encompassing the key
natural elements that have shaped
and inspired the development of the
city: from the highest points of the
Tijuca National Parks mountains
down to the sea. They also include
the Botanical Gardens, established
in 1808, Corcovado Mountain with
its celebrated statue of Christ, and
the hills around Guanabara Bay,
including the extensive designed
landscapes along Copacabana Bay,
which have contributed to the
outdoor living culture of this
spectacular city. Rio de Janeiro is
also recognized for the artistic
inspiration it has provided to
musicians, landscapers, and
urbanists.
Easter Island (Chile) - Rapa Nui,
the indigenous name of Easter
Island, bears witness to a unique
cultural phenomenon. A society of
Polynesian origin that settled there
c. A.D. 300 established a powerful,
imaginative and original tradition of
monumental sculpture and
architecture, free from any external
influence. From the 10th to the 16th
century, this society built shrines and
erected enormous stone figures
known as Moai, which created an
unrivalled cultural landscape that
continues to fascinate people
throughout the world.
Potosi (Bolivia) - In the 16th
century, this area was regarded as
the worlds largest industrial
complex. The extraction of silver ore
relied on a series of hydraulic mills.
The site consists of the industrial
monuments of the Cerro Rico, where
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continent, these 19 islands and the
surrounding marine reserve have
been called a unique living
museum and showcase of
evolution. Located at the
confluence of three (3) ocean
currents, the Galpagos are a
melting pot of marine species.
Ongoing seismic and volcanic
activity reflects the processes that
formed the islands. These
processes, together with the
extreme isolation of the islands, led
to the development of unusual
animal life such as the land
iguana, the giant tortoise, and the
many types of finch that inspired
Charles Darwins theory of
evolution by natural selection
following his visit in 1835.
Iguazu Falls (Argentina) - The Rio
semicircular waterfall at the heart of
this site is some 80 m high and
2,700 m in diameter and is situated
on a basaltic line spanning the
border between Argentina and
Brazil. Made up of many cascades,
producing vast sprays of water, it is
one of the most spectacular
waterfalls in the world. The
surrounding subtropical rainforest
has over 2,000 species of vascular
plants and is home to the typical
wildlife of the region: tapirs, giant
anteaters, howler monkeys,
ocelots, jaguars, and caymans.
Patagonia Mountains (Chile) - Inti Raymi (Peru) - a (9) nine-
At South Americas southernmost
tip lies a vast and wild land that has
been barely settled or civilized
since humans first arrived tens of
thousands of years ago. Patagonia
is, as Bruce Chatwin famously
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Argentinas biggest wine party,
bringing together everyone from
the field workers to the wine
vineyard owners and the rest of
the wine-loving world. Well, 40%
of the rest of the world actually
comes; the rest are domestic
visitors. (www.fest300.com,
2015)
Danzantes serves to
commemorate the triumph of
good over evil. However, unlike
many religious festivals, Diablos
Danzantes consists of
townspeople dressing up like
devils, donning fierce masks,
and dancing frenetically around
the town square. Most groups of
Diablos Danzantes perform with
accessories such as maracas,
whips, crucifixes, and rosaries
all used as an effort to ward off
evil spirits. Live music
accompanies the dancers,
mostly percussion and string
instruments. (www.fest300.com,
2015)
Carnival (Brazil) -
Carnival in Rio has earned its
reputation as the worlds most
famous dance party, when all
matters serious come to a halt
during the five (5) days leading
up to Ash Wednesday and the
start of Lent. (www.fest300.com,
2015)
day winter solstice celebration
worshiping the Incan god Inti in
the city of Cusco, it involves
colorful costumes, lavish
banquets, festive music, an
elaborate reenactment of
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water is provided by an intricate
system of aqueducts and artificial
lakes; the colonial town with the
Casa de la Moneda; the Church of
San Lorenzo; several patrician
houses; and the barrios mitayos, the
areas where the workers lived.
Cartagena (Colombia) - Situated Los Glaciares National Park Tapati Rapa Nui (Chile) -
on the northern coast of Colombia (Argentina) - area of exceptional Easter Island (Rapa Nui) may
on a sheltered bay facing the
Caribbean Sea, the city of
Cartagena de Indias boasts the most
extensive and one (1) of the most
complete systems of military
fortifications in South America. Due
to the citys strategic location, this
eminent example of military
architecture of the 16th, 17th, and
18th centuries was also one of the
most important ports of the
Caribbean.
wrote, the farthest place to which
man walked from his place of
origin, and to this day it retains
near-mythical status in the minds of
the worlds adventurers. Spanning
both Argentina and Chile,
Patagonia is home to fantastic
mountain peaks, vast and empty
steppes, glaciers, and ice fields,
and stunning national parks. It is an
incredible display of natural beauty,
virtually untouched by the hands of
man.
natural beauty, with rugged,
towering mountains and numerous
glacial lakes, including Lake
Argentino, which is 160 km long. At
its farthest end, three (3) glaciers
meet to dump their effluvia into the
milky grey glacial water, launching
massive igloo icebergs into the lake
with thunderous splashes.
ancient Inca rituals, and
culminating in a royal
procession to an ancient
fortress. (www.fest300.com,
2015)
be best known for the monolithic
heads, or moai, that dot its
landscape. However, Easter
Islands claim to fame each
summer (that is early February
when you are south of the
equator) is Tapati Rapa Nui, a
festival that is at once a test of
masculine strength and feminine
grace, a celebration of local
culture and a welcoming of
visitors. (www.fest300.com,
2015)

REFERENCES:

Dos and Donts. (2015, March 14). Retrieved December 8, 2015, from
http://www.traveltaboo.com/category/

South America. (2015, January 17). Retrieved December 8, 2015, from

http://www.affairscloud.com/

South America Map. (2015). Retrieved December 8, 2015, from http://www.mapsofworld.com/

World Heritage List. (2015). Retrieved December 8, 2015, from http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/

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