Sucre is the city you stay longer in than you meant to. It is Bolivia's constitutional capital, tucked into a mild valley at roughly 2,800 metres, and its centre is a calm grid of whitewashed colonial buildings with red-tiled roofs that earned it a place on the UNESCO list. The altitude is gentler than La Paz or Potosí, the air is warmer and the pace slower, which is why overlanders tend to rest here after weeks on the plateau.
The city's story is the story of the country. It was founded in the sixteenth century as La Plata, the administrative and legal heart of the silver empire that grew up around nearby Potosí, and it has since carried several names, including Chuquisaca. In 1809 it saw one of the first cries for independence in Spanish America, and in 1825 the declaration of independence was signed in the house now known as the Casa de la Libertad, which is worth an hour. Students fill the streets because of its very old university, which gives the cafés an easy energy.
The riding out of Sucre is better than the city suggests. Roads wind up through eucalyptus-lined hills and dry mountain farmland toward Tarabuco to the east and toward Potosí to the west, with plenty of curves, changes in elevation and occasional wandering livestock. The pavement is serviceable on the main routes and gets rougher on the secondary ones, and the weather can turn quickly from sunshine to rain in the afternoon. Morning light on the white walls and the green hills is the picture to wait for. Plan to be in the saddle before the heat builds.
Since this is a city of a couple of hundred thousand people, fuel, food, repair shops and a good night's sleep are all in easy reach. Eat chorizo chuquisaqueño and drink a cup of hot chocolate from one of the local shops, because Sucre has long made chocolate and takes pride in it. Park the bike securely, since the centre's narrow streets are quiet at night but not unwatched, and give yourself a full day to wander before riding on to the rest of the highlands.