Voiceover: The Andean highlands, called the Altiplano, is an extensive area of high plateau found at the widest part of the Andes mountain range. It was formed millions of years ago by sediment washed down from the mountains, filling a deep valley found between the Oriental and Occidental Cordilleras.
Sonia Daudet: The Altiplano is in the widest part of the Andes but in between two ranges. So in the middle is the Altiplano, and one range is in one side. For example here is the lake Titikaka. This lake has a 195 kilometers length. And here is, this is part of the Altiplano but the Altiplano continues down to the south. And here is the Oriental Cordillera and here is the Occidental Cordillera.
Voiceover: The Altiplano is, on average, 3,300 metres or 11,000 feet above sea level, making it one of the highest places to live on earth.
Voiceover: The climate of the Altiplano is, in general, dry and cold. However, the temperature can change greatly due to the latitude and altitude of the region. During daytime, temperatures can reach between 12 to 24 degrees Celsius, while during the nighttime ranging from 5 to minus 20 degrees Celsius.
Voiceover: Being able to live in such high altitudes and with such a harsh climate is not easy. So how can people live in these areas?
Sonia Daudet: The Indians of Peru, Bolivia and the north of Chile learned centuries ago how they make a living using fauna and flora. They domesticated the llama, an animal, to obtain meat, milk, hide, fuel with the fat, from the fat, and wool. They developed food - potatoes - because this is originally from this Altiplano, and the highland grains.
TEXTThe Llama.
Voiceover: Aside from meeting the necessities of daily living, those who dwell in the Altiplano also require more oxygen in their body because the air gets thinner when altitude gets higher. People experience difficulty breathing and their ears become plugged, much like the plugged-ear effect people experience on an airplane.
Sonia Daudet: The other thing is they cultivated, in sheltered places, coca plants. Why? Because coca leaves have the property to diminish the effects of the altitude.
The causes of these symptoms are the lack of enough oxygen in the altitude. Why? Because the layer of the air is so thin. To reduce these symptoms, the inhabitants chew the coca leaves.
Voiceover: Although it is not easy living in the Andean Altiplano, nowadays this region is home to millions of people and tourism is a major industry.
Sonia Daudet : If we consider the tourism, we can say it's developed in the whole Altiplano. But we have emphasis, or the companies of tourism put emphasis, in some areas. For example in Chile, in the north of Chile, you can have San Pedro de Atacama, the geysers of El Tatio, Cordillera De La Sal, which is a salt range if you want, Lauca National Park, just very close to the border with Peru, and Valle de la Luna, etc.