Bachata

The dance group I joined was dissolved in late April due to too low number of students to make running classes cost-effective for the school. As people were dropping off along the way, firstly two groups were merged into one and then, as number of folks eager to continue went down below five couples (from sixteen on the onset), it all went phut.

Truth be told, I did not look out actively for a new class. I owe taking it up to someone else, who induced me to move my arse and sign up for a class in a totally different style, in a totally new place (Warsaw, downtown).

The choice, though as I need to stress not entirely mine, is challenging, as Latin dances are featured with high complexity in terms of body movements. Merely moving around to the rhythm is far from enough. To get it right you need to practice a lot, have a good teacher who knows how to explain what you don’t… feel and you need to have… knack for it.

Bachata is one of those Latin dances geared to make the most of the proximity between partners. If you plan to take it up, you need to realise it and not be perplexed by it. The course I have signed up for is focused at learning to dance universally, not to learn to dance with your partner, therefore participants switch between partners several times during the class. It requires some openness from couples who come over, yet if someone does not accept it, no one coerces them to pop round. As yesterday I was telling my friends about the classes, they came up with comparison to swingers’ parties… Which is an unjustified parallel.

Compared to the previous school, the set-up and style of running classes are worlds apart. In the new place a class begins with a quarter-long warm-up, while the remaining 45 minutes are spent dancing and participants are given more free rein when it comes what exactly they want to practise. On the other hand the drawback is a still big number of people, so before some of them drop off you might not reckon the teacher will come around to assist you every time you struggle to get it right.

The climate of the school smacks of what sometimes is depicted in dance films. Side street in eastern Śródmieście, entrance in a dim gate, stairs down to a basement, tiny interior, steamy inside, smell of human sweat in the air… Ideal conditions for making new friends ;-)

All in all, glad I’ve found one more activity to get the stress out of myself. I have no idea how long I carry on with this, as I am aware of my limitations and dancing Bachata is not a piece of cake.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t lack self-confidence and am not about to give up shortly after the word ‘go’. Growing mature is about realising both one’s strengths and weaknesses. One should make the most of the former, leverage on them and boast about them. But when it comes to the latter, one should strive to overcome them when possible, but if not, know when to stop and back away in dignity. Both partners must draw pleasure from dancing; if one is dissatisfied with the other, the other one should not be indifferent about it. Otherwise it ain’t gonna play ;-)

Dance class

September. Nagging heatwaves have gone by for good. Nights are drawing in. Time to break out of the lethargy in which I plunged just after the exam and in which I lingered over nearly the entire summer. Time to focus on less mundane stuff than floating between home and work with some occasional only entertainment.

Nearly three years of swotting up for three levels of the examinations have worn me down and put off learning for a while. My idea to refresh my command of German, lost on account of not using it (I was reminded of it specifically painfully last year while holidaying in Germany), has been given up. Firstly, I did not feel like taking up another course, doing homeworks, etc. Secondly, signing up for a language course would require attending classes twice a week either early in the morning or in the evening, which for work-related reasons (the New Factory requires more and more flexibility in terms of business trips and staying overtime) could not be viable, or on Saturday mornings, which in turn does not come into play for family-related reasons.

A new pastime activity was meant to involve some sort of physical exercise, so eventually I have plumped for dance classes. So far I have had two lessons and absolutely do not regret my decision!

Definitely it is never too late to learn something new and useful. While attending parties and weddings I was never chair-ridden, but I danced as good as I could (just as many people do). But why dance as you can, while it is better to “can dance” (pun intended, yet sounds silly, unlike the Polish lepiej umieć tańczyć, niż tańczyć jak się umie). My selection was the party dance course (taniec użytkowy) – not complicated, yet most coming in handy on social occasions.

Before signing up I had some doubts whether I was up to it. My sense of rhythm is below-average, yet my co-ordination of movements of limbs must not be bad if I drive a car at absolute ease, so I hoped I would not bugger up all along.

After two classes the impressions I can share are the following:

- as long as the pace of learning is moderate and an instructor does not try to teach you too much, grasping the dance comes up naturally,

- switching the partners continuously adds much value to the learning, since you do not learn how your partner moves, but develop universal habits and learn how to send and receive impulses to and from your partner,

- dancing not only enhances your daily routine but also helps you forget about the quandaries of the daily grind,

- it is essentially the chance to meet new people and simply have fun!, but

- unlike some of you may think, odds of finding there a life companion are statistically and practically low (in my group those people who do not come with a partner, have been sent by their partners to brush up on their dancing skills).

There was a time people urged to take a dance class to find a girlfriend. When they gave up on urging, I settled for it on my own! The sound approach, I believe, is to go there for any other reason than to find a girlfriend. Otherwise, I would have ended up frustrated!

And once the current course draws to a close, I will sign up for another one, just to have fun!