Colombia - Tourism and Travel

The Republic of Colombia is located in northwestern South America. It has coasts on the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.

Colombia has an area of 440,831 square miles (1,141,748 kilometers).

There are plains along the coasts.

The Andes mountains break up into three ranges - the Cordillera Occidental, the Cordillera Central and the Cordillera Occidental - in Venezuela and western Colombia.

In Colombia, these ranges are separated by plateaus and high valleys. Most of the people live in the plateaus and valleys.

The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, a mountain chain that is not part of the Andes, also runs though Colombia. The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is a granite massif. It rises from the lowlands on the Caribbean Coast. The tallest peak is 18,947 feet (5,775 meters) high and is covered in snow.

Southeastern Colombia contains grassland and Amazon rainforest.

Low grasslands in the east are known as llanos.

More than one fifth of Colombia's total surface are is covered by the drainage basin of the Magdalena River and the Cauca River, the Magdalena's main tributary.

Colombia has a tropical climate. The climate is cooler at higher altitudes.

Bogotá is the capital of Colombia. It is located in the high Andes, where the climate is temperate.

Like many American cities that were founded by the Spanish, Bogotá has large open squares, such as the Plaza de Bolivar.

45,660,000 people live in Colombia.

75% are mixed race, 20% are white, 4% are black and 1% are Native American.

Spanish is the official language. Native American languages are also spoken.

95% of the people are Roman Catholic.

Colombia's main exports are oil and oil-related products.

The country has coal, emerald, gold, silver, nickel and platinum mines.

Colombia is the largest producer of emerald's on Earth.

Only 5% i of the land in Colombia is cultivable.

Colombia is the world's second largest producer of coffee, after Brazil.

Other important agricultural exports are bananas, sugar, cotton and flowers.

There are mineral processing and food processing industries.

Colombia's economic development is hindered by the country's role in the international drug trade and by political instability, both of which have led to violence.

Heroin poppies are grown in Colombia.

Revenue from the illegal trade in narcotics is important to the economy.

Colombia has a presidential system of government.

The official currency is the peso, which is equal to 100 centavos.