I will post about, salsa, bachata, beauty, fashion, photography, and life in Japan. I want to share everything that I find to be interesting, beautiful, and fun. I studied Theatre Costuming and Japanese, graduated from WVU in Morgantown West Virginia, and moved to Tokyo in 2017 to pursue my many dreams. I studied abroad in Nagoya at Kinjo Gakuin University in 2011 and you can read about that in my older posts here. I currently work as an English teacher using theatre.
They say that money can’t buy happiness, buuuut it got me salsa and bachata lessons, and I can’t stop smiling.
😁
So, it’s official! I have started taking salsa and bachata classes from today with HTDC salsa in Tokyo, Japan. What a time and place to be starting Latin dance! I started my day (actually, the second hardest of my regular work-days of the week) late because I was tired and didn’t feel like it, but knowing I had dance to look forward to helped. I got up, ate breakfast, went back to bed to cuddle with husband, then put on my big girl pants to head out and face the day. As usual, it wasn’t easy, but I kept reminding myself of what I had to look forward to. Work ended and I felt reaaaalllyyy excited AND nervous which I didn’t really feel before with this same group of awesome dance people that I’d already known and danced with at social dances. It was my first time learning choreography with them at an advanced level.
Oh, that’s another fun tidbit! I’d previously learned only the basics from my best friend who introduced me to salsa and bachata, and danced only at social dances, but the teachers at HTDC recommend that I take advanced! There’s beginner, upper, advanced, and expert, and bachata.
It’s hard though. It’s a challenge. Taku told me I could do upper and it would be maybe too easy, or do advanced, and it would be hard, so he recommended the challenge, and I accepted. I want to improve. I think that after one day, I’ve already learned a lot and improved though. They’re working on routines for Yes We Dance event, which I don’t think I can actually participate in because it’s a work day for me.
You know that feeling when you're falling in love? The butterflies in the belly, the can't stop thinking about the object of your affections, the listening to songs that remind you of them? That's me right now. Except, it's for dance. Yeah, that's right, I'm falling for salsa and bachata. Like seriously though, that's the closest way I can explain this feeling.
So, on Halloween, me and husband went to see our actor friend's show in Ebisu. It was all in Japanese and covered some difficult topics, such as racism, fast fashion and wastefulness, etc. After the show, I wasn't sure how much of it I really understood. We met up with our friend in the show for drinks after and talked about it in English, and I apparently really did get the meaning! Like, some of the small conversational details and jokes I missed, but I actually understood the most important parts of the story! This is the second fully in-Japanese theatre performance I've witnessed. The other was of another amazing actor friend, and it was more comedy and slightly easier to follow.
I was already planning to meet my best friend who made me try salsa after this. He taught me some of the basics so he could practice with me, and the first event I went to, he performed at. His salsa people were having their weekly lesson and biweekly social dance on Halloween. Husband isn't into dance like me, so he was on the fence about going, but we got a free trial lesson, as it was our first time, so he ended up trying it out. Our actor friend also gave it a try!
They learned the basics, and then as soon as the social dance part came around, I was ready to dance all night! They both left to grab drinks, and I hit the dance floor. About 3 dances in, they came back, and they were like...already itching to leave. Luckily our actor friend had to meet up with his cast for drinks too, because this was their last performance, and husband wanted to get to know them too, so he made his escape and tagged along! Meanwhile, I danced with some amazing dancers, some of whom I'd already met and danced with a bit at the other event I went to and it was SO FUN! So, both me and my husband ended up partying and missing our last train together in Ebisu, while Shibuya Halloween insanity happened one train stop away.
At around 11:25, after some kind of cuban salsa dance circle thingy that confused both me and my friend, the dancers started talking about their last trains, which I had completely ignored. I grabbed my phone (also ignored) right when husband called, and told him I'd been dancing and wanted to continue, and he said he was having fun and also wanted to continue XD Buuuut then the dancing stared to fizzle, and so did husband's group, so we met up (I got to meet the actors, and it was cool seeing what they were really like as people), and walked as far as we could which was a little beyond Yoyogi park before giving up and ¥5000 taxi-ing it home.
Now, I am constantly thinking and talking about dancing, listening to bachata music, and plotting and planning the next event I can go to. I tried west coast swing recently which seems to be kind of like the bachata of the swing dance world, but while I loooooove bachata, I just can't figure out west coast swing, and I'm not entirely sure yet if I want to... Everyone I met at the 2 west coast swing events I tried was SUPER nice and welcoming and a lot knew pretty good English too.
My favorite dances in order, right now are maybe bachata, salsa, then Lindy hop/east coast swing. I looked up a bit of background info about salsa and bachata, because I knew that they are Latin dances, but not much beyond that. I was pleasantly surprised to find that bachata is originally Dominican. I am half-Dominican, but never really had a chance to connect with that half of me since I was a child. Divorce, moving from New York to West Virginia, I forgot the little I did know.
This Sunday after my play rehearsal, there is an event with the west coast swing people that has a west coast swing lesson AND bachata lesson, and social dance, so I'm thinking to give west coast swing another (3rd) chance, and if I still don't get it, at least I can bachata!
My best friend has gotten super into salsa recently, and I've always been into dance, especially swing dancing. To be honest, I'm surprised it took him this long to get into some type of ballroom dancing since it fits his personality so well. Actually when we met, I'd thought he might have already been into swing dancing or something and was surprised to find that he wasn't. Anyway, fast forward to now!
His most recent passion is salsa, and he's taught me some of the basics and practiced with me a bit, which was really fun because I could actually follow! It feels really nice to be able to jump into a different type of dance and pick it up so quickly. Bachata seemed more difficult. I actually knew a little bit about bachata because one of my close friends in college in the US was really into it. That was the first I'd ever heard of it, but I'd never really tried it.
There were some performances, then someone would would ask me to dance, or when I was feeling brave, I would ask someone. They would listen and declare the song as either salsa or bachata, which I can now maybe tell the difference. It was surprising at first to suddenly be led into bachata, because I knew the basics of salsa pretty well, and bachata is a lot...closer, physically. Bachata is a lot more sensual than salsa, and dancing it was so much fun! The people I danced with were all really nice and it wasn't like weird, just fun connections with people who love to, and are good at dancing. It was really fun, and everyone was super cool!
Anyway, I think I've fallen in love with some more types of dance
I got to see Choom! We walked by the salon she get's her hair done at and saw another friend there getting her hair done, so we dropped in to say hi. What are the chances?? Also, one time I was randomly walking by there alone, and the hairdresser literally ran out and told me my hair was cool and he wanted to have me hair model sometime, and I was like OK, actually my friend is one of your regulars 😄 Anyway, Choom came to my place, helped me organize my disaster of a room a little more, and then we wandered around and did a mini photo shoot, and had a long chat about life while on the swings at at park. The kinmokusei were just past their peak of full bloom.
Sunday October 10
This was quite an eventful, fun Sunday! Husband was in Osaka with his band, so I tried to have fun anyway. It started out with rehearsal for Midsummer, and I helped our new fairy learn her part in the songs, and we practiced the dances a bit. After that, we went for lunch and drinks at a nearby Izakaya with lots of fish. I was in a really good mood, and I was having so much fun I didn't want to go, even though I had a swing dance event from 3.
Tomato hai
Table charge food. The fish is shishamo which I have gotten used to eating, even though it has a head and eyes
It just landed like this. Lucky, right?
I ended up leaving right on time to make it to swing dance! I went to this monthly event before, recently. In fact, I think that this event, pre-covid, is where I met my best friend Mo! Anyway, I was a bit self conscious about smelling like izakaya, but since I was a bit tipsy at that point, I was fine, and jumped right into that prime dancing mode without the awkward warm up time.
There was a jam session for people who came from afar for this event. There were a few people from Tochigi, other parts of Japan, one guy from abroad. I figured swing people already knew me, so I was safe, but the cute blue-haired, super amazing lead girl pushed me forward, because it ended up being kind of a foreigner jam, so I didn't argue, cuz I'm a Leo and get to be the center of attention, and then I get to dance with everyone 😁 Right before this, I was asked to dance by a Japanese swing-dancer guy I hadn't met before. After the jam, we danced, and he was amazing! Then, he asked for a second dance, which my proud self was glad to accept, that this super awesome dancer actually wanted a second dance with me?! I talked to another guy after, and then we danced and he could kick so high when we did Charleston, I was like, my old ballerina skills better come back and beat this man's kick! The funniest thing was we were all speaking only Japanese during the event, but actually, they both knew really good English! I didn't find that out until later, when I met another cool Canadian girl who was new to Japan. I am glad that they spoke Japanese to me at first though! I want to have more chances to actually use Japanese, you know living in Japan and all, and most people are very quick and eager to try to speak whatever English they know, which often is not a lot, so it makes it hard to get to really get to know people. For me, personally, at least. I'd rather that you dive in with Japanese, I follow the best I can, which is pretty decent, and getting better, then if I'm reeeeeally lost, I will let you know, and then, we can try to figure out the English. I don't want to just be an English language partner, I want friendship, no matter what language we do it in!
Anyway, after the event, one of the guys finally invited me to the after party! I finally had my chance to break into the swing friend group. They now knew I know enough Japanese to communicate, and that I'm truly interested in swing and permanently gonna be in Japan. It all starts here, and man, was it a good start! We went to grab some craft beers at a local brewery. I talked a lot more deeply to everyone in English and Japanese. After the brewery served their last orders, we ended up on the way to the event leaders' home after stopping to grab some drinks to bring with us. They cooked us dinner, and I talked and listened and learned a lot about the swing community.
Here's to some more fun theatre rehearsal and swing dance adventures!
Which will be this weekend...and a festival...will be posted here! 😉
This weekend was actually pretty packed, but I'd have to say this is pretty typical for my weekends living and working in Tokyo. My days off are Sundays and Mondays, which is common for eikawa teachers.
Sunday October 2nd
Sundays start off with going to rehearsal for Midsummer Night's Dream! I'm costume designer, and also cast as the fairy, Moth. After that, we usually go for drinks and lunch, but this day, we went for a quick burger, but then had to go to husband's parent's place to pick up their car.
We took the car to meet Yama-san of Yama Japanese restaurant that we'd worked at together in Morgantown, West Virginia, the only true Japanese restaurant I've found outside of Japan. We picked him up at his hotel, and the original plan of steak changed to either yakiniku, sushi, or a type of grilled fish restaurant that had a specific name in Japanese that sounded like robot, but I forgot (asked husband, it's robata). I wanted to do the grilled fish, so that's what we decided! We found a place in Sangenjaya, and it was maybe one of the best restaurants I've been to in a while! Info for it here. Maybe I'll make a Tokyo favorite restaurant guide....but anyways. I digress.
They had sashimi that just melts in your mouth...
And super delicious, crispy grilled salmon...
And weird things that I didn't want to try...
Did you know the liver of this shell-fishy thing was curly and green?? And people eat it????
Monday
We went to my husband's parent's house again, to pack up some stuff to bring to our place. Not super exciting or out of the ordinary, but I love having my family here, something so regular and comforting, to spend time and eat yummy food with.
