Hamid Ansari today left for Lima on the first-ever visit at the Vice Presidential level to mineral-rich Peru as part of India's thrust towards Latin America. 
Several agreements including one on setting up of a Joint Commission and another in the area of culture are expected to be signed during the three-day visit to Peru. 
The Vice President will reach Lima tomorrow after an overnight halt in Frankfurt. The visit to Lima is significant given the fact that Peru is the sixth largest economy in Latin America and the fastest growing in the region.  

Peru has signed an agreement with the United Kingdom that will help to promote military and defense cooperation between the two countries.

Andina news agency reports that British Ambassador to Peru, James Dauris and Minister of Defense, Pedro Cateriano signed the agreement in the Grand Admiral Grau room of the General Headquarters of the Army in San Borja, in the city of Lima.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) office in Peru this week hosted a group of Andean Community migration data experts focusing on how migration data can influence and promote policies to encourage safe and positive migration for the region. 

Proponents of Quechua hope that using the language in a technological setting will help to preserve the indigenous tongue.

Archaeologists in Peru have uncovered a pre-Incan tomb that is more than 1,000 years old.

Found at Lima's Pucllana archaeological site, the tomb held bodies of an adult, an infant and nearly 10 preserved artifacts, including remains of guinea pigs, jars bearing feline designs and 12 fabric bags, Agence France-Presse reports.

"This is one of the most important finds in more than three decades of excavation, because both mummies are intact," researcher Gladys Paz told AFP.

I had heard all the hype about Papacho's. I heard about the long lines. I had heard about the delicious hamburgers, and I knew there had to be one waiting for me with my name on it. My search for an excellent hamburger ended the first time I dined in Papacho's back in May. 

Reports indicated that exports of the Peruvian grape brandy pisco have risen dramatically in past years.

It's been said many times, but it bears repeating: pisco is having a moment.

A number of high-profile stories have hailed it as a trendy new drink for liquor connoisseurs, and the Peruvian government has even enlisted 10 bartenders from the United States to be ambassadors for the national drink.

A few hours later we arrived to the Monasterio hotel of Cusco. An old monestry which more than 10 years ago was turned into a luxury hotel and still is one of the finest hotels of Cusco. The atmosphere and especially the courtyard is absolutely fascinating, both during night and day and is a MUST-visit, when you're in Cusco.

Peru's tourism industry is projected to grow by 12 percent in 2013 compared to last year, driven by increasing foreign tourist arrivals.

According to Peru's Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism Magali Silva, about three million tourists have visited the South American country so far this year and the number is expected to rise to 3.2 million by the year-end. 

Peruvian designers who work with alpaca wool will have a chance to show their products to an American audience at a fashion show on Nov. 20 in Washington, D.C.

The event, entitled "Peru Fashion Night," is being put on by the Peruvian Embassy in the United States, as well as the Peruvian Association of Exporters (ADEX), Biz USA Peru & Americas, and PromPeru.

According to a press release published by the event's organizers on Fibre2Fashion, special emphasis will be placed on pieces made from alpaca wool from the Cusco regi�n. Clothing made with Peruvian Pima cotton will also be on display.

Officers are using Quechua, one of Peru's indigenous languages, to better serve and protect residents.

"It's an asset for police in the Andean regions to speak Quechua," Officer Ramiro Villagaray, who is bilingual, told InfoSur Hoy. According to the report, around 20% of the Andahuaylas police force already speak some Quechua. However, its use in a police context requires some guidance. 

Some 200 indigenous women from all over the globe will gather next week in Lima, Peru, for the World Conference of Indigenous Women, entitled "Progress and Challenges Regarding the Future We Want." 

The Peruvian Geophysics Institute (IGP) reports that Ubinas Volcano in Moquegua has once again shown signs of activity.

In early September, Ubinas registered a number of small explosions that initially cause alarm in the local population. However, as a column of potentially dangerous silica ash rose as high as two kilometers into the sky, authorities were forced to declare a State of Emergency in the area. The volcano had been quiet for several weeks, but now it has once again released smoke and ash into the air.

Question: What's red and green and goes 175 miles an hour?

The Peruvian Obstetrics and Gynecology Society (SPOG) see serious problems with the way young women use the so-called "morning after pill."

According to SPOG president Alfredo Celis, young women in Peru use the pill more often than they should. Celis highlighted the fact that the emergency pill- as they would prefer the public refer to the medication- is only meant to be used in situations of urgency.

It would be a classic "he said, she said" case if he weren't a highly regarded prelate and if what was said didn't include the word "abortion." Former Catholic bishop Guillermo Abanto, 48, admitted that he fathered a child with Alexandra de La Lama, a psychologist 20 years younger, but denies he ever objected to recognizing the little girl, who is now 2 years old.