AUTHOR: SalsaCrazy TITLE: August in New York, Salsa - Salsa, and Salsa - Part 1 DATE: Tuesday, September 06, 2005 ----- BODY:

New York, New York, what a wonderful town! 25 dancers from the SF Bay Area all descended upon an unsuspecting New York this week, and caused an unbelievable amount of trouble for seven days of workshops and dancing. It's Sunday morning - the day after the Copacabana (fantastic band - Conjunto Classico), and about six too many tequila shots. Alex (our New York co-ordinator for the trip) just called - I'm late for our Descarga Latina (Nelson Flores) workshop. After the last few days of Delille Thomas, and yesterday's Santo Rico (Thomas), I'm completely worked. I must admit - the life and vitality of New York (let's not even talk about the dancing), is really amazingly fun. There's just no where else like it. And yes - my intentions were to run out the door to the Bronx and catch the workshop, but alas, I'm opting for a good breakfast, and to write a blog entry instead (lazy, lazy . . ). I need a little break time!

Returning to New York is all about learning. From the dancer's you dance with, to the teachers whom are giving us workshops, it's always been super invigorating for me, and always totally humbling. Dancing is a never-ending progression - and there's always more to learn. I really enjoyed this chance to take classes, and learn some real On2 style New York flavor. It's my plan to try and make it at least once a year! Our group is a mix of levels, but overall a lot of fun people. I can't believe today is our last workshop. This trip is zooming by . . .

It's funny, in every workshop, we learn at least some contradictory information, each teacher completely committed to their style, and their teaching, as the "right" way to dance! Amaryllis - shoulders go back and flow while you dance. Thomas, roll the shoulder's forward into your steps. Delille, never mix chacha and mambo comment, versus Santo Rico's chacha shine footwork (danced to an incredibly fast mambo I might add). It's fun and enlightening to see all the different styles of dance here, all within the relatively small "On2" community. Apart from Eddie Torres - I'm not sure anyone focuses on bringing new people into the scene, which might explain why at a population over 10x San Francisco, the dance/club scene has relatively few dancers (the largest New York social, still smaller than Allegro Ballroom). The music however . . . is just simply phenomenal. And the band, which recently have found far fewer places to play, are really the finest musicians you'll find almost anywhere.

A "coup" at the Copa: We waited in line after dancing at the Pier to get into the Copa, where we were one of the first people inside this monstrous club. All the tables were reserved ahead of time, but, amazingly enough, some creative thinking, a little pleading, and a connection with the hostess (along with all our available cash - thanks to Dakin), got us the ONLY table left in the entire place. A table at the Copa - not that easy to get (woohoo). Huge floor - which we had to ourselves for the first hour, before it became incredibly (and I do mean incredibly) crowded. First class band, and a fun dance crowd, made this a night to remember. Perhaps I'll return here on Tuesday! This was the only club where the air conditioning was adequate. Even with one thousand people.

This is my 1st quick update from the streets of New York!

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