Monday, Feb 4 -Friday Feb 8 I danced tango every night at a different milonga and had a wonderful time. I went out to dinner several times, mostly in the Balvenera Area. I took 2 tango lessons, one with each of the Luis’s. Gave several English lessons to Luis M. (tango teacher) & Tota (housekeeper). It was a very relaxing week -- just living in Buenos Aires. Sat, Feb 9 On my way to Bariloche in the south for a two week stay. I arrived at the bus station in Buenos Aires (Retiro) at 2:00 for my bus to Bariloche which was leaving at 3:00. Luis gave me a ride. I waited and had a coffee at the bus station and while I was there I was robbed. Because I was alone I didn’t see two ... read more

Sat, Feb 3 I spent the day shoe shopping and got a pair of tango shoes to wear for practicing. Lesley and I had a wonderful tango lesson with Humberto Pouchulú, “El Puchu,” who teaches classes sometimes at La Casa Maria Tango. He is a professional dancer and beautiful to watch. He is more well known as a folk dancer since he only took up the tango a few years ago, but he is an amazing dancer. Here is a Youtube video of him dancing la Zamba (a folk dance): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=333Sr3aDOBA and the Tango: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuvXRKSfk_c Later we went to “El Arranque” for the afternoon milonga (which lasts until 9:30!). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wc8p2CXYsPY We then had dinner and tried to find some Cuban Salsa dancing with no success. So we came home and went to bed around 12:00 (an ... read more

Jan 31 - Spent the day getting oriented in Buenos Aires, one of the largest and most important cities in South America. About 1/3 of the country's 36 million people live in "gran Buenos Aires" that is the city and its surrounding area. I went exploring with someone I met here named Lesley (from England). The nice thing about Maria Teresa's Tango House is that it's full of interesting people from all over the world, most of whom love to dance. Many languages are spoken, but we usually default to Spanish because it's the one language we all have in common. Lesley and I decided to figure out the subway (El Subte), which began operation in 1913. It is still being expanded today as you can see on the official web page. http://www.sbase.com.ar/inicio.asp We caught the ... read more

I'll be leaving for my trip on Jan 29. Today I'm at home in Seattle, just seeing how this travel blog works. I'll be staying in touch with family and friends and with my colleagues at Cascadia Community College (Bothell, Wa). Hasta luego a todos! ... read more