5 Best Sights in The Southern Andes and Lake Titicaca, Peru

Referred to as the Juanita Museum, this fascinating little museum at the Universidad Católica Santa Maria holds the frozen bodies of four young girls who were apparently sacrificed more than 500 years ago by the Inca to appease the gods. The "Juanita" mummy, said to be frozen around the age of 13, was the first mummy found in 1995 near the summit of Mt. Ampato by local climber Miguel Zárate and anthropologist Johan Reinhard. When neighboring Volcán Sabancaya erupted, the ice that held Juanita in her sacrificial tomb melted and she rolled partway down the mountain and into a crater. English-speaking guides will show you around the museum, and you can watch a video detailing the expedition.

The restored Victorian iron ship was built in Birmingham, England, in 1861. It was subcontracted by the Peruvian Navy to patrol the waters of Titicaca, so it was dismantled and its 2,766 pieces and two crankshafts were loaded onto a freighter and shipped to the Pacific coast port of Arica, which was then in Peru but which today belongs to Chile. Mules and porters carried the pieces 467 km (290 miles) through the Andes Mountains to Puno. The journey took six years, and it was Christmas Day 1870 before it was reassembled and launched on Lake Titicaca. Now a museum, it's docked at the end of a pier by the Sonesta Posada del Inca Hotel. After remaining idle for 40 years, the vessel took a trial run in 1999 after volunteers rebuilt its engine.

With a solid collection of indigenous pottery and textiles, human-sacrificed bones, and gold and silver offerings from Inca times, this archaeology museum at the Universidad Nacional de San Agustín provides insight into local archaeology and ruins.

A hidden gem, this museum pays tribute to the infamous coca leaf and Peruvian folklore. The quaint museum includes a folklore exhibit as well as everything you'd ever want to know about the coca leaf. Presented in English and Spanish, displays are well constructed with educational videos and photographs. The mission is not to promote coca but merely to share the plant's history and culture. The folklore exhibit displays elaborately constructed costumes worn during festivals and shares the history behind the dances. Visit the store and purchase some coca-based products or have your future read in the leaves.

This history museum provides an overview of Arequipa's development into a modern city. Highlights include a photo and caricature gallery of local aristocrats, and exhibits of archaeology, natural history, and architecture. Housed in the 1804 building, in the Sala Naval (Naval Room), are extensive displays of old maps, paintings, and war memorabilia. Great for a quick lesson on Arequipa's urbanization.