Santa Cruz may surprise you with its small-town feeling, colonial buildings and relaxed tropical atmosphere. Bolivia’s largest city oozes modernity yet clings stubbornly to tradition. The city center is vibrant and thriving, its narrow streets crowded with suited businesspeople sipping chicha (a fermented-corn drink) at street stalls. Locals still lounge on benches in the main square listening to camba (eastern lowlands) music, restaurants close for siesta and little stores line the porch-fronted houses selling cheap, local products.