The bird singing competition is held on the capitol grounds during October and, depending on the number of birds, can go on for weeks. The competition begins around 7am and lasts for 2-3 hours. When we asked locals how the birds are judged, we got this response: "It's like rapping. Whichever bird counters the most, wins." Apparently, scores are kept in 15-minute intervals. The day we went, the high score was 194. That bird must have been singing its heart out!

Sadly, we never made it inside but heard that this was THE place to party in Paramaribo. Despite the fact that our friends knew the door guy, one look at our clubbing Havaianas and we were sent back to the hostel. Sad. Bring the right shoes if you want to get in!