John Otis

Colombia's capital is home to 11 million people — and to some of the worst traffic jams in the world. Now Chinese companies are building its first metro line.

Mayor Edilberto Molina relocated to a nearby town last year after drug-trafficking guerrillas threatened to kill him. He's not the only Colombian politician forced away by threats from criminal gangs.

Colombian artist Fernando Botero has died at the age of 91. "I don't paint fat women," he once told Spain's El Mundo newspaper, "I am interested in volume, the sensuality of the form."

"Everywhere you dig, you will find something — because Lima was home to great civilizations," says a museum director in the capital. "But it's impossible to save everything in a poor country."

In Peru, so many former leaders have been accused of crimes that the country has designated a small prison specifically to house them. It's a symbol of corruption, but also of political dysfunction.

Led by their eldest sibling, who is 13, they managed to find food and shelter. All four, including a year-old baby, stayed safe until Colombian special forces and Indigenous guides rescued them.

A popular immigration passageway saw a drop right when the U.S. passed new rules imposing criminal prosecution and requiring proof an asylum-seeker was previously denied in another country.

Cross-border trade between Colombia and Venezuela has slowly opened up after the countries reengaged following years of bad relations.

NPR ventures into a Colombian emerald mine — which used to be more dangerous, with potential explosions inside and gunfights outside. The CEO, a former U.S. diplomat, says he wanted to change that.

Conservationists say a sustainable fishing program has helped the recovery of the local pirarucu — which can be up to 10-feet long and weigh 450 pounds.