Nashville, TN: As I concocted my blog in my head tonight on the drive home from Ibiza, I decided I was going to title it with the first song that popped in my head with the word "feet" or "shoes" in it. After clearing my mind of salsa beats, I waited for the chosen one to reveal itself to me. Suddenly it was clear: "When I'm Back On My Feet Again" by Michael Bolton. Seriously? Come on, brain. THAT is your first thought? Not "Dancing Shoes" by the Arctic Monkeys or even "I'll Be Back Upon My Feet" by the (original) Monkees? You know my love of and history with pop music, but even I have to draw a line sometimes.
Back to the matter at hand (or feet, as it were). It's been at least 3 months - if not 4 - since I last salsa'd. I was going on a fairly regular basis -- Thursday nights, with an occasional Saturday night thrown in for good measure. I normally danced with my new friend, Jose, who generously helped me in the very beginning, when I really didn't know what I was doing. But now it had been a while and Jose was nowhere to be found, so I had to try this one on my own and see if I could do the old "you never forget how to ride a bike" trick.
And it worked!
Not only did the steps come back to me in a flash, but this was the first time of wearing my new "real" salsa shoes and I could actually get my whole body to do a full turn in a cross-body lead (not as easy to do when you're wearing regular heels). When the first half of the lesson was complete (where the men & women are separated to learn their specific parts), I made a bee-line for the guy I noticed was picking up the steps the quickest. His name was Carlos and once we started dancing together, I could tell we were a good fit. I fet myself stop counting each step and started moving fluidly, swaying my hips a bit more deliberately on the beat. Carlos and I danced a few more salsas then one merengue, which I'm not as familiar with, but I still think I held my own.
I don't want you to think I'm ready for Dancing with the Stars, however. Once Carlos and I took a break, another man asked me to dance -- I believe his name was Carols too (or for the purposes of our story, Carlos Two). Carlos Two was older -- probably closer to my Dad's age -- and smelled vaguely like my Dad when he still smoked (cigarette smoke and men's musk to cover it up). Carlos Two didn't like to talk and didn't look me in the eye much, though I notice most people don't look you in the eye when you're dancing. It's like they're keeping an eye out for who's a better dancer they can ask when we're done. I though I was getting the hang of it until, at one point, I gouged him in the neck with my thumb nail (oops!). He was also a big fan of turning me, and since I was wearing the aforementioned new shoes, I would actually spin more than I wanted to and it was hard to stop myself to get back into position for the basic step (rock back, rock front, together).
One of my favorite parts of the night is the space between guys/girls separate lessons and couples lessons. To get a feel for how fast the steps are going to go, they play one song for everyone to dance to at the same time, alone. When I first heard the song (which they play at every night I've been there!), I knew I knew it, but I wasn't quite sure what it was.
"When I'm Back On My Feet Again" by Michael Bolton? No, but wouldn't that have been a nice tie in with this story? Instead, it's "Lady," originally done by Kenny Rogers, but now, performed by La Palabra. It's perfect for our practice round and makes me smile to think that country music somehow sneaks into every crevice of my life.
Looks like it's a popular song. Check out this video of someone else learning salsa to this song. I could totally handle that setup... as long as I had the shoes.