On September 12, after a long inspection journey, Tangning and his party finally arrived in La Paz around Lake Titicaca. They were not far from their final destination, the ancient city of Cusco.
"I really didn't expect to see such a large snow-capped mountain in the tropics. It's much more spectacular than the Alps. This is really a magical place."
Mary looked at the snow-covered Chakataya Mountains in the distance and couldn't help but sigh.
For Mary, Bolivia is really a magical place. It is obviously in the tropics, but because of the existence of the plateau, the climate is not hot. Now she can even see the snow-capped mountains in La Paz.
The only snow-capped mountains Mary had seen before were the Alps snow-capped mountains she had seen during her previous vacation in Switzerland, which left a deep impression on her.
The Alpine snow-capped mountains are nothing compared to the tropical plateau snow-capped mountains that Mary sees now. They are not on the same level at all.
Near La Paz, there are not only the snow-capped mountains of Chacataya Mountain with an altitude of 5300m, but also a series of snow-capped mountains with an altitude of higher than 5000m, such as Mount Kondoriri, Mount Micaaya, and Mount Murulata. The existence of these mountains is directly in the tropical region. formed a glacier.
This series of glaciers to the west of La Paz has relatively abundant precipitation. Due to the existence of the plateau area, abundant snowfall is formed in high-altitude areas, thus forming numerous snow-covered glaciers.
La Paz is 55 kilometers northwest of Lake Titicaca and 3,577 meters above sea level. It is located in the La Paz Valley in the eastern part of the Bolivian Plateau. The regional environment borders Peru and Chile to the west, plateaus to the southwest, mountains to the southeast, tropical valleys to the east, and rainforest belts on the edge of the Amazon River Basin to the north. The climate is a subtropical mountain climate, with an altitude of 3,627 meters and an average annual temperature of 7°C. La Paz is the highest capital-level city in the world.
The construction of this city is very characteristic of a mountain city. The entire city is built on a valley slope flanked by snow-capped peaks. It is laid out in grades along the La Paz River along the mountain. The houses are clearly layered and in the shape of steps. Some streets have slopes as high as 30-40 meters. It's like a sports grandstand. The ground floor is a commercial area and government agencies, with many high-rise buildings and some Baroque buildings from the Spanish colonial period. The city is surrounded by mountains to protect it from the cold wind.
"Mary, do you want to go skiing at Mount Chacataya?" Tangning suggested enthusiastically.
With Chakataya Mountain, the world's highest ski resort, in front of her, Tangning was very willing to take on the challenge.
Chacataya Mountain is famous around the world for having the highest natural mountain ski resort in the world. This mountain is 5,300 meters above sea level. It is an iceberg in Bolivia, South America. The glaciers of Chacataya Mountain have a history of 18,000 years and cover more than 80% of the entire mountain.
However, due to the rising global climate, by 2010, most of the snow on Mount Chacataya had melted away, leaving only a small portion of the snow-covered glaciers on the top of the mountain. This forced Bolivia to develop higher snow-capped mountains to replace it.
Faced with Tangning's proposal, Mary readily accepted it. "Okay, I haven't paddled in the snow for a long time. It's really meaningful to be able to paddle in this tropical snow mountain."
"Then let's go skiing tomorrow. I haven't skied for a long time, so I want to relive it."
Unlike Europe, Brazil is in the tropics and subtropics. Except for high-altitude plateau areas, there is no snowfall in winter.
European aristocrats prefer ice and snow sports, and Mary likes skiing very much. Unfortunately, there are no good venues in the capital Rio de Janeiro to provide this sport.
Skiing is also one of Tang Ning's hobbies, but his favorite ice and snow sport is skating. For this reason, Tang Ning even built a skating hall in the capital.
The territory ruled by Brazil can provide skiing venues, but these venues are in the plateau areas of Bolivia and Peru in the west. They are too far from Rio de Janeiro. In this era, transportation is not convenient and the people are not rich, so tourism here is The current development of the industry is not very good.
"Honey, La Paz is amazing, I've never seen a city like it."
On the city sightseeing tower, Mary said in an incredible tone: "We are in the tropics here, but the temperature remains at about seven degrees, and besides the Iberian style, this city also has a lot of styles that I have never seen before. "
Mary has been in South America for a long time. The urban structures he saw in South America were all in the Iberian style, and it was rare to see indigenous cultural styles.
Mary had never heard of the Inca Empire before. It was only when she arrived in Brazil that her husband was about to be crowned the Inca Emperor, that she learned that there was such a civilized country in South America.
Mary had always thought that there was no civilization in South America before the arrival of Spain and Portugal.
"Are these exotic styles the styles left over from before the Inca Empire you want to crown? They look interesting."
"Yes, the urban appearance that you see that does not belong to the Iberian style is basically the product of the influence left by the Inca Empire." Tangning nodded.
“Although the Inca Empire had a lower culture than Eurasia, it was considered the top among all civilizations in America.
Among the three major civilizations in the Americas, the Inca Empire also ruled the largest area, reaching Colombia in the north, Argentina and Chile in the south, Brazil in the east, and the Pacific Ocean in the west. It is truly an empire that dominates one area. "
The level of civilization of the Inca Empire was definitely not as good as that of Eurasia, but if you look at America at the same level, it would be at the level of a Big Mac.
Of the three major civilizations in the Americas, only the Incas still have cultural influence. The other two only have ruins left, and their cultural vitality has long since disappeared.
"La Paz used to be the heartland of the Inca Empire. In addition to the Iberian style, it is not surprising that there is also a large number of Inca styles."
In the 13th century, La Paz was part of the Inca Empire and was the core area. It became a Spanish colony in 1538. Spain colonized and rebuilt the city here in 1548, which was then named "The Peaceful City of Our Lady".
Under the influence of history, the city of La Paz retains the Iberian architectural style of the Spanish rule. The center of the city is Murillo Square, named after the national hero. The square is surrounded by the Government Palace, the Capitol and the Catholic Church. It is close to the city center. There is a European Baroque Church of San Francesco in Plaza San Francisco. To the north of Plaza Murillo is the old city during the colonial period. Jaén Street is paved with stone strips in beautiful patterns, and the street is lined with simple and elegant Spanish architecture, the Murillo Museum is located on this street.
In addition to the Iberian style, the Inca style still exists. Tiahuanaco, not far from La Paz, has the ruins of the ancient city of the Inca Empire, the Puerta del Sol, Indian stone statues, etc. In the city of La Paz, there is a history museum and a gold museum that collect folk art and ancient cultural relics. There is also the Benatto Monument. etc.
Influenced by history, Iberian and Inca styles coexist in La Paz.
In South America, except for Argentina, Chile and Brazil, Indians and mixed Indians are the mainstream. Especially the residents of the original Inca Empire area have always existed and reproduced, but they have not been exterminated.
Spain's colonies in western South America largely inherited the Inca Empire. You must know that many places in Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina were originally ruled by the Inca Empire.
Therefore, in the area of the original Inca Empire under Spanish rule, the Inca style is still visible and has not disappeared like the other two civilizations.
"Mary, the Inca style here is not very strong."
Tangning said to Mary: "When you get to the ancient Inca city of Cusco, you will see more of the Inca style. It is the place where the two styles are best integrated."
Cusco was the capital of the Incas. After the Spanish occupied this place, they inherited it and did not destroy it on a large scale. They slightly transformed some parts of the ancient city and then built Iberian-style buildings in other open spaces.
Inca cultural relics can be seen everywhere in western South America, and the ancient city of Machu Picchu has not yet been discovered. When Tang Ning was preparing to inherit the Inca crown, she pretended to discover this city by accident to give herself a sacred halo.
Tang Ning wants the Indians to understand that he is the son of God, and he is the true savior that the Indians long for.
