January 4 - Day 3 - Peru?

So, Lima, downtown has a wealth of upscale stores to rival any European or US city. Politics here are unstable but the economy is in pretty good shape.

Some stats:
- Lima is the fourth most visited city in South America (Cusco, capitol of the Incas, is 7)
- Lima is the 6th wealthiest city in South America measured by:

1. Gross Domestic Product (GDP):
2. Median Household Income:
3. Wealth Accounts
4. City Prosperity Index (CPI)

Peru has the 5th strongest GDP and 6th strongest GDP per capita out of 12 countries. It’s genie index rank is 5th and coincidentally so is their HDI. Democratic governance has been in place since 2001.

So why is there so much unrest including a failed attempt to rule by decree in 2022 by President Castillo? Urban vs rural tensions. Rural supporters felt Castillo, whose base is rural, was being targeted. The other side charged him with corruption. He is now in prison.

Sound familiar? Regardless of how far you go from home, it seems you never left.Read more