Living Up To My URL

I recently realized that my Argentina experience was lacking the first item that I wrote on my goal list before arrival, also something that happens to constitute the URL of this blog. nancylearnsthetango.blogspot.com. Does she? Does she?! I have been so caught up in school and trips that I have forgotten about the world famous dance invented in the country in which I am studying. The dance that represents the simultaneous feeling of isolation of all the immigrants who came from different places to form this country, and their desire for closeness and understanding through human interaction. The tango is not as obviously a cultural staple as I thought it would be upon entering the country. When I talk to citizens of Argentina, the majority of them do not know how to tango. I don't know what I was expecting, maybe that everyone danced tango on the streets while they walked to work, or that people burst into the soulful tango tunes of Carlos Gardel on the subte. I found out that it is a big deal; you just have to find it. There are lessons offered somewhere in the city every night of the week, and there are huge crowds of people that attend. You just have to be active in your pursuit. Last Thursday I decided that I should start making use of the tango shoes I bought for this trip.

My host sister Ana Lucía took me to her usual Thursday night tango lesson at a milonga (the picture above is of me and my sister before leaving). A milonga is an open floor dance scene that anyone is able to join. There are experienced dancers and also people that are just learning. There are tables set up around the dance floor where you can eat dinner and be astonished by the artful expression. Milongas usually offer tango lessons beforehand, which is what I went to. I made sure to find the beginner group, and since there were less of us, I got more personal attention. As we were learning the basic step, I realized that I had already learned it from Agustín my second night in Mendoza! It was exciting that I already partially knew what was going on, but they also had us do a number of walking and pivoting exercises to perfect our movements (apparently this was necessary since the instructor told me I was slouching and moving my hips too much at each count). First we learned the 7 basic steps, and then we learned the "ocho" (translation: 8), which involves pivoting in the middle of the 7 basic steps and sliding around on the floor to form a figure 8. This looks extremely cool if you do it right. Watching the people dance after my lesson was really inspiring. It made me want to become a professional all in one night and start moving my body and legs in the crazy ways that they were. I saw them doing the basic step but adding tons of improvised leg lifts and wrapping their leg around the other person. The dance floor gets really crowded and the man can decide to pause for a few counts if the couple is in danger of hitting another. The tango is a very intimate dance and the woman must be very close to her partner (basically hugging him) so the man can direct her without ambiguity as to what will happen next. The tango is a very machista dance, so the men do all of the deciding and directing. It is against tango code for women to ask men to dance; the man chooses the woman he wants to dance with, makes eye contact with her from across the room, and nods toward the dance floor. The woman can choose to look away or nod in agreement. While the feminist side of me disagrees with this morality, it is also nice to not have to worry about what I want to do next while dancing. Ana Lucía told me that she has to close her eyes while dancing to make sure she follows what the man wants to do and doesn't start improvising too many of her own moves during the pauses.

On Saturday I decided that I had not gotten enough tango for the week, so my friends and I went to dinner and then had plans to go to another milonga afterward. Dinner was great; we went to a place called "El Arte de Mafia" (The Art of the Mafia) in Palermo Soho. The menu was amusing in itself; all of the scrumptious-looking pasta dishes were accompanied by a biographical description and photo of a member of the Italian mafia. The sign for the restaurant had a huge splatter of blood next to the name, and an arrow pointing at it that said "tuco." Tuco is the Spanish word for tomato sauce (sometimes including meat), so it was humorous. After some tiramisu, we headed over to the well-known milonga called La Viruta. There was a beginner group like last time but this time it was much bigger, so personal attention was not the focus. There were many more women than men, so a lot of women had to practice by themselves for parts of the lesson. After the lesson, the lights dimmed and the music was amplified. Since I did not have adequate experience, I just planned on standing on the side and watching people get their groove on. However, plans changed when my friends and I were asked to dance by a few different guys. I made sure to inform them that I was a beginner, but they didn't seem to mind. Carlos was really funny and enjoyed my lack of experience. We didn't get to try tango for very long because after one song, what they call "Rock 'n Roll" music came on, which is what we call swing. La Viruta offers salsa and "Rock 'n Roll" lessons along with tango, so they were playing a mix. He taught me some basic swing dance and I absolutely loved the constant twirling and rocking back and forth. I don't think I mastered it yet considering Carlos started calling me "Nancy from the farm" because he said I looked like I was on a horse when I danced. It didn't work out so well with Guillermo; he did not do a good job of protecting me from other couples and we continuously collided. Then one of my dance partners from the earlier lesson, Fernando, asked me to accompany him to the dance floor. This was very fun since we were both beginners. Our challenge was not getting the step right, but avoiding collisions. Eventually it got easier and we were able to carry on with a conversation without worrying about the whereabouts of our feet. I felt very comfortable dancing with him and I think we might go to more tango lessons together. I also want to check out some of the salsa lessons offered at La Viruta and see if they are similar to lessons I have taken at Madison.

I've been talking to home friends and family a lot lately and it has been very comforting. Because of technology, I feel like I am keeping close to my loved ones at home while still doing everything that I want to here. I feel even closer to some of my Madison friends than I did when I left; it is wonderful to share experiences with them and help each other through rough spots in our times apart. I think I am doing a pretty good job at fulfilling two things on my list of Argentina goals that my Madison friends helped me write before I got here. "Live in the moment" and right below that, "Don't forget your home." There is always the negative side about being away from your friends and family for long periods of time.. When disaster strikes. I just found out from my parents that my Uncle Greg got in his third motorcycle accident, resulting in broken ribs and an injured neck. He is going to be okay but is currently in the hospital and not doing well. I really hope he recovers fully and promptly, but I am also very relieved that he was lucky enough to survive his third crash. All of my memories of him involve tons of laughter, jokes, and funny matching snowman and Santa ties that he and my brother traditionally buy to wear for Christmas dinner. I fondly remember always borrowing his snakeskin cowboy boots when he came to visit. You are in my heart and thoughts, Uncle Greg!