Most of the continent lies south of the equator, where the seasons are just the opposite of those in the north. The cold winds of winter blow in July and August, while people swelter in the heat of January and February. The shortest day of the year is in June, and the longest day is in December. The Amazon Basin, lying just south of the equator, has a hot, tropical climate year-round, because here the sun's rays shine almost directly down with great intensity. Some places on the equator, however, are at higher altitudes, which keep them from being so hot. Quito, the capital of Ecuador, has cool weather all year, because it lies nestled in the Andes Mountains at more than 9,000 feet (2,700 m) above sea level. The Amazon Basin has areas with some of the heaviest rainfall in the world. There is rich farmland in many places and rocky, scorched earth in others.( Daly, D. C. & J. D. Mitchell)
South America stretches from the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea in the north to the icy waters near the Antarctic Circle in the south, where the Pacific and Atlantic waters join. A narrow strip of land, the Isthmus of Panama, connects North and South America. The continent of South America is the fourth largest in
area. It is smaller than Eurasia, Africa, or North America, but larger than Australia or Antarctica. South America consists of 12 independent nations. Brazil is the largest, with almost half of the continent's land area.( Daly, D. C. & J. D. Mitchell) The other countries in order of size are Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela, Chile, Paraguay, Ecuador, Guyana, Uruguay, and Suriname (or Surinam). French Guiana is a territory belonging to France.........
