| ENVIRONMENT |
Loja province is known as “Centinela del Sur”- It has a privileged natural environment which show us a deep, intimate and powerful culture that is expressed toward music, poetry and handicrafts. It is located in the south part of Ecuador, next to Peru.
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| Vilcabamba |
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Vilcabamba is known as a longevity valley because a lot of its inhabitants overpass one century of life. It is located 52 km. from Loja. The average temperature is 18 – 22 degrees centigrade. Some people affirm that the climate and the water have curative proprieties for heart illness. |
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| Podocarpus National Park |
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This marvellous natural resource represents an unchanged ecosystem with a huge diversity of biology species of wild flora and fauna unique in the world. It is a permanent laboratory for scientific investigation.
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| El Cisne |
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The Sanctuary of El Cisne is in the highest part of a crag. It is located 70 km. from Loja . This is a place where a lot of people venerate the “Virgen del Cisne”. The basilica have a Gothic stile, it is a good representation of colonial era, inside it we could see Virgin Mary, which was sculptured in 1594 by Diego Robles. There have a museum with relics of saints, cloths, sacred ornament and souvenir for devout.
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| Saraguro |
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It is located 64 km. from Loja City. In this town live one of the most important indigenous group of America, they are named Saraguros. The inhabitants maintain their social organization, their original traditions and Inca’s rituals. They are rich for their ethnic, costumes, traditions, folklore and music.
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| Puyango
petrified Forest |
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This is a natural treasure. It has paleontological fossils of marine animals and pieces or whole petrified trunks that have 65 to 500 millions years. This botanical forest has an area of 2659 ha. This legendary tropical land is an exceptional adventure for tourists.
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