Author
Articles by Lucia Fontaine
Andes
Four million alpacas, one soft economy: Peru's fiber ladder
Peru holds most of the world's alpacas, but most raw fiber leaves cheap and returns expensive. Inside the value chain herders, mills and luxury brands are fighting over.
Lucia Fontaine
Andes
Machu Picchu's ticket machine: how to see a wonder that nearly loved itself to death
About 1.5 million people a year squeeze onto a ridge built for an imperial estate. The circuits, the quotas and the booking tactics, explained for visitors.
Lucia Fontaine
Andes
The world's best restaurant is in Lima. Peru built that on purpose.
Maido took the top spot in the World's 50 Best ranking in 2025, two years after Central did. Behind the awards: potatoes, migration, state promotion and a supply chain rewritten by chefs.
Lucia Fontaine
Andes
Salar de Uyuni: the world's biggest mirror runs on two economies
Bolivia's 10,000-square-kilometer salt flat is simultaneously a lithium vault and a tourism phenomenon. Both claim the same horizon, and only one is currently paying.
Lucia Fontaine
Andes
Small farms, global price: the 540,000 families behind Colombian coffee
Colombia grows the world's most recognized arabica on tiny family plots organized by a century-old federation. How the system works — and where it strains.
Lucia Fontaine