Sat, Mar 17 2007 - Latin Fever (View Original Event Details)
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All right! Where were the ladies last night? We initially had 14 who signed up but at the last moment, the majority of women dropped out. The guys (4 of them) thinking there would be enough women on the list to be their partners showed up. I was especially impressed with Arkady who travelled all the way from Oshawa for this event. Plaza Flamingo is a two-floor building with a restaurant and show on the first floor and the dancing lesson taking place on the second floor. The dance instructor, of South American descent was quite hilarious. His great sense of humour resonated through the speakerphone and made everyone feel at ease. The lesson started with a few of us from TOC but soon more people joined our group and the room was filled with 40 people. We were asked to line up in two rows, women on one side and men on the other. It was so much fun! The instructor took us through each step as we proceeded to practise with the person in front of us. Though we didn’t know the person in front of us, it was O.K because according to the South American instructor, when you dance it is like a family environment. You dance with everybody. Guys should be bold enough to ask girls to dance. (Of course if you know a few Salsa dances all the better!) It is a great way to break the ice and you may even get a date out of it, if you are lucky? Ha! Ha! Every so often the men were asked to move one space to the right, so you could have different partners. Everyone danced differently, some learned the routine fast, others danced like a chicken without a head but it was all fine because the bottom line is for all to have fun.
Nancy and myself were the two women in our group. We felt protected by the TOC men, our bodyguards. (Just kidding, I had to throw that one in) The men with their collared shirts were not shy and looked pretty dazzling in comparison to wearing their hiking attire…track pants, runners and knapsacks. Basically we all looked pretty cool. Everyone followed the dress code to a T. Gerry even brought his shiny black shoes to change into. I must confess that Gerry had his own creative style of dancing and outshined me on the dance floor, even though he was occasionally a bit off in beat.
Now you can’t underestimate Arkady either. Though he might not look as energetic as Gerry, Arkady’s swift steps can sweep any woman off her feet. He has some experience with Salsa. You must watch out for him and he might even teach you a few steps.
Well the fun loving David…and I hate to say this, he stepped on my leather shoes even before we started dancing. Way to go David! However, I forgave him for he put forth his best effort “to lead” the lady in the dance. However, given his two left feet, I did most of the leading. Nonetheless, David had a great time as I spun him around like a ballerina. We hung on for dear life and he never dropped me once. (Wheeoah….)
I guess we cannot let Jason’s quiet demeanor fool us. Remember, this is the same guy that threw Lorie a surprise farewell party. Well, he is still living up to his classy act like the true gentleman that he is (O.K Jason you owe me a coffee for this one!) he even asked Nancy to dance. Although his rhythm was a tiny bit off, what a ball they had.
Thank you to all that came out for this event. For the most part, it was nice seeing the fun side of people.
Min C
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