Und der Februar beginnt

And to the milonga, we go!

Now it’s the beginning of February, I am pleased to say  no only are we back dancing at our usual places, but we are discovering new places too.

So first, we’ll visit the familiar.

Nuevo Chicque is located in the Casa de Gallica building on Ave San Juan, just before avenida Belgrano bus stop on the bus route 102. This milonga happens on Tuesday and Thursday mid-afternoons weekly.

For years, this milonga has been well attended as it’s a friendly milonga that offers traditional tango seating. Men along the right side in two rows and women on the left side in two rows.

The entrance area and the opposite street side areas are reserved for couples who want to sit together. Tango tourists pay admission and watch the milongas from this side of the room, too.

Marcela Pazos, the organizer, greets everyone with a hug and a smile as she escorts you to your reserved seat that she has preselected for you.

Sometimes, you get the first front chair and sometimes the back row. I don’t have a clue as to how she makes these decisions. [Maybe it would be an interesting idea to interview her on this topic. Let me know your opinion!]

If you’ve never been here, the room is in the shape of a long rectangle having old and well maintained wooden floors. But there are still some divets that can catch your heel. So keep a watchful eye. Hanging on the walls are old dark landscape paintings, which recently were covered up by banners depicting some of the famous tango composers.

The Tdj, Danny Borelli Tango, is seated on the raised stage at the back of the milonga. He observes the dancers moving on the floor below him. As the dj looks around the dance floor, he is always taking the pulse of the crowd. From his perch behind his computer, he selects the music. He likes the older classic tango orchestras as I do.

Usually, the floor fills with the dancers as the music begins. Cabeceo or no Cabeceo partners are chosen, and they become the appointed dancers in this tanda.
Here, the dance style preference is Milonguero – close embrace. The crowd is generally above 50 years or so. As typical to any milonga, there are people dancing on the notes and after the notes.

Sometimes, musicality can be an issue for this age group, but today, all is great as many folks are smiling and dancing. Folks are enjoying themselves with a glass of water, when in the past the glass usually held champagne. A must do here is to order a slice of the homemade apple pie. Am told by friends, it’s delicious.  Everyone’s chatting between the tandas, some with their neighboring person, while others are texting on their phones.

After further observations, looking around the space, I see a few frowning people and others whose facial expresses are sad faces, or is it the face of disappointment?

My question is, why would you show such behavior at a milonga?

The other observation I have never been able to figure out is why men, in particular, attend a milonga and don’t dance the whole time. They sit by themselves. Do they have fear of rejection, or is it the anticipation of rejection?

The same can be said of women who sit at their tables and sulk. They sit like flowers that haven’t been watered for a bit. All wilted. Maybe the air conditioning didn’t cool them off enough.

Before going to the milonga, I clear my mind of all the daily stuff. The shopping list. What needs to be done list. Iho to a milonga to immerse myself in the world of tango. When I’m at the milonga, my purpose is to dance a few dynamic tandas, sit, and catch up with other tangeros I haven’t seen in a while.

Ordering my token glass of champagne, I survey the floor. I drink the champagne and enjoy my glass as I continue to watch the dancers. I am here. I’m thoroughly enjoying the view of the milonga from my seat. Tango, waltz, and Milonga!  Then the magic happens. The cabeceo. The nod. And off to the floor we go.

I will spend about 2.5 hours here at this milonga. Dancing. Chatting and most of all enjoying myself in the life of tango.

Tango es la vida!

La vida es tango!

Abrazo