masterwordsmith-unplugged

Years ago when my older boy was in Std. 2, my husband and I took up ballroom dancing. Serious! We learnt the waltz, tango, foxtrot, nightclub two-step and also Latin American dances such as cha-cha-cha , rhumba, merengue, favorite jive and the east coast swing. My late father was a ballroom dance enthusiast and used to give lessons as well. However, he never really taught us because he figured there was not much hope for my husband and I ;-p.


Last night, I was listening to one of my favorite tunes - Antonio Banderas' version of Beautiful Maria of My Soul from the movie "The Mambo Kings" based on the book of the same name written by Oscar Hijuelos who is the first Hispanic to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. I met him a few years ago at a writers' conference and just could not believe then that a famous writer such as he could be so down to earth and humble.



The Mambo Kings tells the story of César and Nestor Castillo, brothers and aspiring musicians who flee from Cuba to America in search of the American Dream. According to Wikipedia HERE, the film received an Academy Award Best Original Song nomination for its original song, Beautiful Maria of My Soul, which was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award in the same category. The film's song was also nominated for the Grammy Awards' "Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television" category, along with a second number from the soundtrack, Mambo Caliente. Latin music legends Celia Cruz, Tito Puente and Arturo Sandoval performed on the soundtrack album.

CLICK HERE to listen to the song which is a beautiful piece, sung with so much passion and most seductively in a deep throaty velvety voice by Antonio Banderas! This movie shot him to stardom years ago and if you still have not watched The Mambo Kings, please do so asap!!

Anyway, listening to that song over and over again yesterday and even this afternoon while shopping for blogger templates (yup - time to change templates soon), I remembered those days when hubby and I were dancing away at different places. Some may think it is a romantic pursuit but dancing is akin to a marriage. How and why? You can read my thoughts about this topic in an old post called Do You Jive, Quickstep or Salsa?

Dancing requires discipline, patience, stamina, perseverance and the willingness to learn from mistakes, much like being a spouse to the one to whom we married.



I've forgotten many of my rhumba steps and was happy to discover a few good video clips that actually refreshed my memory.

So if you are interested in the basics of rhumba, please CLICK HERE.

If you prefer cha-cha-cha, please CLICK HERE.

If you rather learn the sexy merengue, then CLICK HERE.




And of course if you like the lively and seductive salsa, CLICK HERE.

My aunt in US is almost over 75 years old and still dances almost everyday. She looks younger, sexier and has a svelte body like that of a 40 year old!!! Even at her age, she goes to Blackpool Dance Festival every year to compete. She has always reminded me that when dancing, we must enjoy ourselves and NOT to be self-conscious.

At the same time, she always advised me to let my hair down and to just groove with the music. However, hand, hip movements, posture and even facial expressions are very important to project the right mood and to show that we are having the time of our lives.

If you are not attending the vigil tonight, I hope this post can make you dance the night away! Do share your thoughts and experiences about dancing. Thanks! Have a lovely evening!