Patricia and Me

Last night I went to las Chirusas, one of my favourite milongas, with one of my favourite tango instructors. I ended up dancing a set of tangos during the milonga with Patricia, my teacher. She seemed really surprised at the end of the set, because we hadn’t really danced before, so she didn’t know my abilities completely. Anyway, after we danced she hugged me and said “That was beautiful! Perfecto!” Which made me feel really good. Then she took me to her table and introduced me to her friends and I talked with them for a while and I danced with a bunch of different woman. When you go to a milonga, tangos are danced three at a time. You can begin during any of the three, but once you start, it is polite to finish the set with whomever you are dancing with. For some reason, the sets are of four at las Chirusas, and I know it sounds awful, but sometimes you start dancing with someone and they just don’t have that X factor at all and you think “Oh man, I don’t know if I can do another three songs”. But you do, because otherwise it’s really rude. But there are some women who dance very well, and those are the ones who know when to move and whose frame is so close that we lean on each other completely and we dance cheek to cheek. Those are the best tangos, when you’re so close, and you just feel the music and dance. After one set, the people on the floor parted, and a younger couple began to dance. I can honestly say that it was the most beautiful tango I have ever seen in any context in my life; they were a beautiful couple, their outfits, the music, and their chemistry. There was a moment when I thought about filming some of it, but I opted not to. Somehow moments like those are best left to just experiencing them; like it would almost detract from it all if I were to film it. Besides, it’s not like filming it or taking pictures is ever comparable to the real thing. I’m really gonna miss Argentina.

 

I'm gonna miss her! She was my first official Tango instructor.

 

 

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