Where Is Machu Picchu [Paperback]

What's left of Machu Picchu stands as the most significant link to the marvelous Inca civilization of Peru. Now readers can explore these ruins in this compelling Where Is? title.

Built in the fifteenth century and tucked away in the mountains of Peru, Machu Picchu was abandoned after the Spaniards conquered the Incan empire in the sixteenth century. It remained hidden until 1911 when Hiram Bingham uncovered the marvelous complex and shared his discovery with the world. Today, hundreds of thousands of people visit the site to climb the 3,000 stone steps, explore the towering monuments, and see the numerous species that call these famous ruins home.Megan Stine has written several books for young readers, includingWhere Is the White House?,Who Was Marie Curie?,Who Was Ulysses S. Grant?,Who Is Michelle Obama?, andWho Was Sally Ride?She lives in Clinton, Connecticut.Where Is Machu Picchu?
 
 
Flocks of green parrots flew overhead in the jungle. The air was sticky and damp. It was July 24, 1911. Hiram Bingham and six other explorers had been trekking through the jungles of South America for days. The thirty-five-year-old professor from Yale University was on a quest. He was searching for the place where an ancient people called the Incas had once lived and then died out four hundred years before. 
 
Ever since childhood, Hiram had dreamed of a life of adventure. Now he was finally living it. He was leading an expedition that included a doctor, a naturalist, and a geographer. They were in Peru, where Hiram hoped to discover the ruins of the lost Inca city of Vilcabamba. He wanted to become famous.
 
The beauty of the jungle was breathtaking. Orchids bloomed everywhere. Snowcapped mountains towered above. Hiram and his fellow explorers followed a path along a river. They passed waterfalls and tree-size ferns.
 
Hiram later wrote, “I know of no place in thelÃS