Last Tango in BA

Now that I've had a week to reflect on my month in Argentina, I think the thing I loved the most was (drumroll please)...the dance! SURPRISE, I LOVE DANCE! God, I'm so predictable. Salsa and partner dancing seems to come so naturally to Argentine people of all ages, shapes, and sizes. Coming from the US, it's not often that you find great dancers who aren't professionals. In BA that was not so. Imagine my astonishment upon entering a nightclub where web designers, soccer players, newscasters, senior citizens, and otherwise self-conscious teens are all practically shimmying their shirts off in the same place like it's the most natural thing in the world. All of a sudden the dance floor becomes a circle of cheers as one particularly amazing couple, who appear to be in their forties, take the floor in a "dancing with the stars"-esque Salsa/rhumba duet. It is not choreographed. They are not professionals. These people just love to move their bodies!

In addition to the general spirit of movement that is so contagious in Buenos Aires, I happened to be there during the World Tango festival. I didn't go to any of the competitions, but there was Tango everywhere. It was ridiculously fun for me to ditch ballet and modern technique class for a while and start from scratch. Every week, my favorite Argentine and I would head over to La Catedral (that neat old Tango joint I wrote about a few posts back) have some wine and organic empanadas, and take a two hour class (only five bucks a pop!). One would think that being a dancer would make learning the Tango easier. It doesn't! I can fake the salsa and basic dancing with a partner if need be, but Tango is a different art entirely. Learning to follow was the hardest part. We spent hours just walking with our hands on our partners shoulders learning how to feel the difference between leading and following. Walk, switch partners, walk, switch partners, walk, walk, walk, walk. Now walk backwards! By the time I actually got to dance it was such a thrill, you'd think I'd never set foot on a dance floor. Dancing with partners who were more experienced was like floating on air once I learned to follow correctly. All of a sudden, I was dancing Tango! I'm determined to continue with classes once I get back to NYC. I may have had my last Tango in BA, but I'm not done yet:)