Flanked by the mountainous Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea, the slender state descends from tea plantation-cloaked slopes to golden beaches that edge into vivid blue seas.
These include chewing the leaves to mitigate the rigours of Bolivia's bleak Altiplano, 4, 000 metres (13, 100 feet) above sea level, as well as the coca tea given to tourists on arrival in La Paz.