Bolivia is a landlocked South American country that lies between Peru, Brazil to the north with Chile, Argentina, and Paraguay to the south. The geographic coordinates to the center of Bolivia are 16.29 S and 63.58 W, with the capital being Sucre which is in the south, central part of the country. The total area of Bolivia is 1,096,581 sq km with 1,083,301 sq km of that being land mass. Being land locked Bolivia has no coastline but is known for its rugged peaks in the Andes Mountains, the highest of these (in Bolivia) being Nevadeo Sajama which reaches a towering 6,542 m, to put that in perspective, the highest point in America, Mt McKinley only reaches 6105.4488 m. Bolivia is an extremely biodiverse country and while it has towering peaks it also extends into the lowlands of the Amazon Rainforest. The climate varies extremely with altitude and can be tropical and humid in one place while being cool and arid in others.
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ClimateBolivia is extremely interesting when it comes to climate as it has a little bit of everything (except a beach). Natural disasters and potential hazards include but are not limited to, extreme cold, extreme heat, landslides, and occasionally earthquakes. As far as land use goes, about a third of the country's land is used for agriculture while about half is in forest.
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CultureBolivia is very unique when it comes to culture. While it is relatively homogenous when it comes to language and religion, there is a sense of diversity as Quechua and Aymara people both track their roots back to then Incans. Some 60% of the population speaks Spanish while nearly 70% are mestizos (of mixed Spanish and Native decent). One interesting tidbit is the art of Bolivia. Religious paintings have been reworked by local indigenous painters. The food is typical South American/Spanish fare and it consists mostly of corn, potatoes, and quinoa. This is then combined with Spanish staples including pork and beef.
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History1538- Spanish Conquer Bolivia, becomes part of Peru.
1545- Cerro Rico is discovered to be rich with gold 1824/25- Simon Bolivar (Venezuelan) leads the fight to liberate Bolivia. Bolivar becomes president. 1879- Bolivia becomes landlocked after losing Atacama coast to Chile 1920-1923- Rebellions by indigenous peoples and miners 1952-1983- A series of military coups take place resulting in immense US and European Aid 1983-Present- Violent pseudo democracy with a plethora of coups and different attempts at government |