San Cipriano

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We clamboured aboard the contraption with some hesitation. It was a motorbike adorned with planks of wood either side and resting on the train tracks. It could comfortably seat 5 but up to 25 people could be squeezed on with some contortion.

The residents of San Sipriano, unable to reach their town by any other means, had crafted an excellent method for ferrying people, essential goods and an increasing number of tourists.

There was only one track and should you meet a bike coming the other way, custom required that the bike with the least number of people or objects was forced to abandon their position and move the bike into the surrounding jungle. Depending on the time of day this could happen every few minutes in a journey that lasts around half an hour.

Residents live in basic wooden houses, without electricity and in some cases running water. Houses are erected near the banks of a wide and relatively fast flowing river. This river provides the primary basis for tourism to the town as people come to enjoy the experience of swimming or tubing down its rapids. A tubing adventure can take anywhere up to an hour depending on how slow you go, how many trees you get stuck under or how often you lose your tube after cracking your tailbone on submerged rocks.

The somewhat icy water is as clear as glass and fish and coloured stones can be seen as you float along. Luxurious trees line the banks and only the sounds of birds and peoples laughter break the peaceful silence.

Being the jungle, it rains everyday and our sojourn on the motorbike back to the bus stop was almost met with a terrible fate as a bolt of lightning struck the ground only metres from the section of track on which we were riding.

Fortunately we only had to contend with the absolute soaking we got from the rain!

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Photos

Piled on the motorbike
apparently they can fit up to 25 people on one

Waiting at the bike stop
Equivalent of a bus stop in this little town

Traffic jam
If two bikes are travelling in opposite directions one of them has to be lifted off the tracks

Ready for a photo
They loved seeing themselves on the screen of my digital camera