Back to it!

Today I went to new dance class. There is a dance club in town that I walk past quite often. I have frequently thought about going there, but last time I was doing so much, I never got round to checking it out.

I haven't danced since I took my bronze medals in March. No particular reason, just one thing after another seemed to happen, and then I never got into it.

Tonight class had been running since September, but it was a beginners class, so I picked it up quickly. It was quite nice to have missed the very basic stuff that I would know. The teacher was good, kept things moving at a brisk pace, and the class was relaxed and friendly. Equal men and women as well, including the female teacher. (Who turned out to be someone I knew from classes I took last year. She remembered my name - I'm very impressed!)

We started with the samba. I hate the samba. Interestingly I went to move it back in March, and took a carnival samba class which was very different and alot more fun. The ballroom samba I find difficult and often dull, although once a whole class gets doing a routine it can be okay. I felt I was getting the technique more than I had before, simply because I knew the basic steps so I could concentrate on the knee flexing bounce, rolling by hips and remembering not to put my heel down on the second step! We also didn't do any silly samba walks.

We then moved onto the tango. The tango is my favourite dance ever. When I did my bronze medals I chose the tango over the quickstep, whcih is strange because the quickstep is the reason I started going to lessons to begin with. But I love the mood of the tango, and flexed knees (ow) the awkward foot positions (owow) the leaning and dramatic head flicks. Today we eve did a little kick! Very dramatic. I'm looking forward to doing more of that routine.

We were going to go on to a chacha routine they'd already started, but we ran out of time. Next time we're going to add more to the samba and the tango as well as the chacha. Unfortunately it's not going to be for two weeks, because of half term.

There is no intermediate class at this club, but before the lesson there was a woman taking suggestions in exchange for cups of tea, and several people said that they had been in the beginners class for a year (or two!) and felt they wanted to do more. So perhaps next term there will be an intermediate class I could join. But I think the beginners class is a good way of getting back into it.