Apparently a Sunday night tradition in Rurrenbeque is to grab your motorbike and a friend, and then head to the Plaza de Armas to ride in a circle, repeatedly. After a stop at the Mosquito Bar (a mistake) to use our free drinks coupons from the Amazonas airline, we headed back to our hostel when we heard a roaring sound. It wasn’t until we were closer to the plaza that we discovered the origin of the noise. Everyone in town – or at least it felt that way – was riding a motorbike around the plaza. Those that weren’t participating in this ritual were sitting inside the plaza. The sight of all these people out at 10pm was a shock to us because the plaza had been deserted most of the day.
The earlier part of the day in Rurrenbaque was uneventful. The heat and humidity were intense and I gave up on all activities except eating ice cream and laying in the hammock. Any movement whatsoever resulted in my clothes being drenched in sweat. Marc on the other hand hiked up to the mirador, and then headed across the river (with the local ferry)to the neighboring town – Buenaventura.
