I'm feeling like I am returning to normal. I didn't take any meclizine today and was able to go to the gym and take two tango classes without suffering from vertigo. My ear is still ringing louder than usual, but I feel like it is returning to normal.
I decided to try a different tango class today. Last week, I took two classes with Jorge Firpo - Milonga and Vals. Both were a little challenging for me and I spent a lot of time dancing alone in the corner. I thought I should return to Jorge's class today because I had learned a pattern last week and thought we would continue with the same patterns, thus making the classes easier for me this week and also valuable (that I'd get these patterns down). But after finishing at the gym and coming home to have lunch, I decided to take my time and go instead just to Jorge's Vals class and then stay for the next class which the girl at the desk had indicated as a class that was at a more basic level.
Jorge reminds me of a guy I used to work with in Japan named Max. Max was a cranky old bald guy with a mustache. I don't know how cranky Jorge is but he looks like Max - he is bald and has a mustache. He's also kind of arrogant (I think).
When I got to the studio, he was still in his Milonga class and I had to wait outside. The girl at the desk kept checking to see if he was finished and she'd come back and say "un segundo" (just a second), but seconds turned into minutes and finally at 2:10, she let us in.
Jorge was talking to some people in the front of the room. He seemed unconcerned that his Vals class was beginning 10 minutes late. 10 minutes, became 15 and then 20. Finally, everyone from the Milonga class cleared out and those who were staying for Vals turned out to be a young Colombian couple, a Chilean guy who was there last week, and me.
The Colombian couple were very good dancers. They could have competed in the world tango championships (if they hadn't). I was wondering why they were taking tango classes. The Chilean guy was not bad, but I was happy to see that he was struggling with some of the steps. I felt all flushed and embarrased and dry mouthed and was glad the class started 20 minutes late and couldn't wait until it was over.
Jorge's manner of teaching is a bit odd. He has us stand behind him as he does different steps. We follow. He doesn't explain what he is doing. We're supposed to just see it. I can't see it. What I see is - he is walking, he is walking, he is walking fast, he is turning, he did something with his left foot, he is walking he stopped. But it is more than that. There are weight shifts, you need to know which foot is going forward, how to turn, which way to turn, what to do with your torso, how to lead your partner to do her part, but Jorge just says, "follow me".
Fortunately, he tried to simplify things for me. As he gave more complicated steps to the Colombian and Chilean guys, he told me to just do the basic step, which was in time with the music. That was hard enough for me - the other guys were stepping in time with the music and against the time of the music - alternating between quick and slow.
I hated the class.
At 3:00, after only 40 minutes of torture, Jorge said that the class was finished. It was supposed to end at 3:30. He said since there weren't a lot of students, he was going to end the class and we had 30 minutes of practice. Since there was only one woman, and she was with a partner, and they didn't need practice, the Chilean guy put on his street shoes and left and the Colombians talked to Jorge a bit and left and Jorge put on his jacket and put on some music for me to practice alone and left.
I was feeling a bit frazzled. I was conflicted, because I thought it was really unprofessional for him to end the class early (when I was being charged for a full class), but at the same time, I was SOOOOO relieved! I didn't complain.
Turned out the next class didn't start until 4. So I went outside to get some fresh air. I walked a block to a smelly park that has a dog pen in the middle and lots of homeless guys sleeping on benches.
When I returned for the 4 p.m. class, there were already some students there, and the two teachers Alberto Sendra and Fernanda Japas, were sitting and chatting.
This is THE class for me. The first woman I danced with had never had a tango class before. She was a bit hard to dance with because she was back-leading (not letting me lead, but going where she thought she was supposed to), but that was cool with me. I got to warm up with her and then moved on to another woman who was much better, but still not one of the high advanced dancers like I had been meeting in the other classes.
We worked on a few simple patterns that were quite nice and I think we are going to continue them next week. Since there were two teachers, they demonstrated the pattern, breaking it down, TELLING us what they were doing and then showing the leader and follower roles. It was all very clear. Then Alberto danced with each one of the guys while Fernanda worked with the women. There were several men who just sat and watched a lot and only danced a little. There were a lot of beginners in the class, and I might have been one of the more advanced students there. It didn't make me feel any more comfortable, but in general, compared to the other classes I've been trying, I felt very comfortable in this class and have decided that it is the class for me at this point.
Now I have three classes that I have found that I like, and I think in combination with my private lessons with Marcelo, I am going to get a good tango foundation and eventually feel comfortable moving on to other classes. But really for me, these basic classes are so good because they don't let anything slide. Alberto kept correcting me. He would tell me to step with the music, or to step more forcefully, or to lead more clearly - all things I need to work on and I don't need to be doing these fancy steps that the other guys are throwing out there if I am not able to lead my partner clearly.
I see on the class schedule that Alberto and Fernanda teach a class on Friday as well, and I might go back and try that out - especially since this week I am behind since I didn't go yesterday.
I rushed home to watch Patito Feo - a really silly teen soap opera, but it is a good source of input for me and I do hear some new vocabulary. It's good for me to get used to listening to Spanish. I found in my tango class that I was so caught up in trying to get these steps, that my Spanish comprehension was difficult. I think it was because I was nervous.
It's a good thing I will be coming back again next year since it has taken me a month to settle into a routine and find what it is that is helpful for me and what is not. I might have to go through some more exploration when I come back next year, but now I know that I should ask for the kinds of classes that I know I need, rather than search blindly and have to suffer through excruciatingly painful experiences like the first tango class I took, or even Jorge's class today. Live and learn I guess.
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