Loving The Salsa

When I start something new, I'm inevitably behind the other people who have been studying for any amount of time.

So when salsa began a week ago, I was having fun, but still a little uncomfortable because I am just doing basic steps while others in my class are twisting and turning.

I do this with almost everything in my life -- any sport, hackey sack, musical instruments, Korean language and so on. Salsa is just the next thing in line at which I'll obsess over to become really good.

So I went to my normal classes on last Tuesday and Thursday, then to the wine party on Saturday and my normal class Tuesday this week. I still make some missteps, but I have the basic moves down pretty solid.

I decided to hit up the open class last night, and I could not have made a better choice. Unfortunately, my beautiful and talented partner, Kyeol, couldn't make it. But I decided to just go it alone.

When I got there, there was a class of middle-aged people going on. I thought it was the open class, but it turns out that class was just finishing up. By the time they cleared out, it was just me and two of the beautiful instructors.

For the next 90 minutes, we pounded out the stuff I already know, as well as new turns and partner combinations. It was really awesome.

I'm no salsa prodigy by any stretch, but after last night's 1-on-2 (YES!) with the teachers, I am feel much more confident.

One of the issues that got to me last year was the lack of any extracurricular activities besides studying Korean. I got sluggish for awhile, and it wasn't healthy for me.

Just look how happy and awesome I am in this picture

Doing this not only gets me out of my house in the evening, but it also gives me something active to do. And maybe the best part is that the instructors don't speak English. That means I get even more Korean practice. Last night would've been pretty weird had I not been able to talk to them with anything more than single words and goofy hand gestures.

But whenever we were taking a break or they were explaining a move, the Korean came into play. It made the session a lot more fun since we could just shoot the breeze when we were between sets.

I know it's tough to find an activity like this, but my best advice to anyone who's new or has been here for awhile is to find some kind of club you can join. Join with a Korean friend to make it easier. I'm sure very few foreigners have ever been at Bamboo Salsa Academy.

They love having non-Koreans there. I don't mean that in a racist way. They just like that someone new is willing to come out and jump into a new situation. They'll be happy you're there, and you'll make new friends and learn something new.

It really helps if you miss your family or are getting pounded by your school. So look around, and find something new to try.^^