I Must Have Been a Brazilian in a Past Life

First Bossanova, then Capoeira, and now Samba!

After much procrastination, I was finally able to attend my first Samba class yesterday. Conveniently located just outside London Waterloo Station, the London School of Samba was where I went with a few friends. We were late, so we skipped the warmup and dived straight in, joining the back of the group. We were all first-timers, so our moves were ackward and forced compared to the regulars who who looked so natural dancing to the beat. But we did our best and marched along. Even if we didn't know the exact steps, the samba beat was enough to make our feet tap in unison with the rest.

Our teacher suggested that we sit out of the advanced session, but were encouraged to watch. The teacher knew best, as the advance session was more difficult. The students had to make their own routine and improvise in front of the whole class! The best part was watching the last part of the class, a freestyle session where everyone could dance whatever samba steps they wanted to. The dance studio turned into a mini Carnival, with people dancing all around the place, a celebration of samba.

Dance is such an intense form of self expression, and by participating and watching the class, I have been really inspired to learn how to loosen up and dance... not just samba, but the other dances as well!

After the dance class, we attended the music class. This was equally fun! There were several instruments to choose, from large bass drums to tiny bells (I didn't know what the names of the instruments were). I picked a medium sized drum to start, and it was a pretty good choice. I had a few pointers from a fellow drummer, and before we knew it, the class was underway.

The band was held together by a conductor, and he was clearly passionate about the music, although I don't know how he could hear everything considering that he was probably the only one in the room without earplugs! Yes, earplugs were a requirement. If you have seen a Carnival festival or have heard samba music before, you will know why. Since we could not hear his voice (or our own voices for that matter), he motioned to his orchestra using hand gestures and his whistle. Even with the earplugs, my ears are still rang with the beat of the Samba drums many hours after the class ended!

It was definitely worth the trip to London on a Sunday, and it is something that I will continue to do as long as I can.

I really must go to Brazil one day. Their culture is hypnotic, drawing me in like a fish to bait. Even if previous plans were cancelled (honeymoon was supposed to be there), it does not mean that I won't go in the future!

La Vita e Bella!