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Baby…IT’S HOT !!!

So today, for the first time in 10 days, the weather is glorious and only 89 with a little wind.

The recent heat wave that engulfed not only Turkey but most of southern Europe really was a wake-up call for many.

Physically dealing with this kind of heat meant staying indoors, most of the day until 18 or 19 hours in the evening.

One day we went on a boat ride to escape the weather.

And even then, when venturing out, you were immediately hit by a wall of heat. OMG. It literally takes your breath away.

So, I’m trying to imagine dancing tango under these conditions.

Yes, we tried to tango at quite a few local Antalya milongas. At most, the air conditioning could not keep up, and the added body heat made it unbearable for me.

I found myself stopping dancing after 2 songs. Trying to dance a full tanda of 4 songs was impossible for me.

At this point, that is an advantage in Turkishtango as you dance on an open embrace. So very little body contact.

Me, I just can’t do this, as Argentinetango to me is a close embrace.


Period.

With lots of indoor time, I spend some time reading on social media. Came across this article, which I would like to share.

Dimintri from the Tango Parnter app recently released the results of a survey he conducted about people’s opinions on Milongas, whether it’s friendly or has terrible dancing. He wrote about his belief that it’s the responsibility of the organizer to be aware of all situations. Good and Bad

Heres the link to article:

https://thecurioustanguero.com/better-milongas-lets-make-it-happen/

I will just comment on one that I have experienced.

As we have attended many milongas in İstanbul, Izmir, Bursa, Antalya and marathon s in Turkey: Istanbul, Cappadocia and Antalya and in Spain: Tarragona, milongas in Madrid and Barcelona.

In both countries, we are the foreigners, and we have had a mixed reaction to us. Not really welcoming or either shunned, just accepted or ignored by locals. I would say not much curiosity.

It is an issue as I love to dance tango, and my body is enchanted by the music. I move in my seat to the rhythm of the music.


My partner is the same, as he plays a bandeon and probably knows most of the tango orchestras and singers. So together we are musical as dancers and only dance Argentinetango.

We are not shy people.
We are very kind people.
We love to share in Tango.

So here’s an idea for organizers of Milongas and festivals.

Would it be so difficult to have a table or chairs set aside and marked for visitors. This way, all the locals would know are visiting?

And for Marathons, would it be so difficult to have a table or two reserved for first-time event attendees?

Or maybe a section for foreigners, so locals can choose to meet the travelers?

Maybe we should get buttons made that say in the local language:

We are visiting from Buenos Aires and look forward to a tanda?

I find most tangeros are wonderful once the ice is broken and conversations happen, but there is no reason for attitudes of superiority or inferiority as we are all people who should treat each other with respect and kindness and continue to dance tango.

Tango es la vida

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Published by Ruth Offen

I chose tango as my dance because I love the lifestyle, embrace, and, yes, dressing up. In my tango series, I share images shot worldwide, in the places where I have danced: Spain, France, Germany Turkey,Canada,Italy Greece, and the USA, but mostly in Buenos Aires, Argentina. With my written stories, I try to share some of the experiences that have stayed with me... An amazing embrace, a beautiful meal, a slightly uncomfortable life moment at a stay a train station or airport. These are the moments we remember. As to my personal info, I was born in New Jersey eventually, after living in New York, Boston, and San Francisco, most recently on San Juan Island in Washington state, I moved to Buenos Aires in January 2020. For 38 years, years I curated a contemporary art gallery, where I refined my skills and became a visual editor. Always with a camera or some picture-capturing device in tow [including much heavy equipment], I started my travel at approximately the same time, was introduced to tango about 12 years ago. VIsual storytelling begins with a moment. Some internal mechanism is triggered by a scene or event or movement and ...there's your photo. Other times, it’s about a sliver of color or something else odd or ordinary that captures the eye. As I am now fluent in Spanish, it is my desire that my stories and photos reach the broader tango community and other travelers. Travelingtango offers translations into Spanish, Italian, and German. Abrazo!!!

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