10 Jan 2009
Well, I would like to tell myself that I originally signed up for Lindy Focus because of my love for dancing, but this would be misleading. In fact, the most appealing aspect when I signed up was getting to live in a hotel room for a week. I love staying in hotels, as they provide the comfort and feeling of taking a vacation without the actual travelling.
When the day came to leave, I got a phone call from Alex and got my things ready in about 30 minutes. We picked up Cari on the way, and I embarassed myself by making more bathroom stops than everyone else combined.
The instructors gave a demo that night, and you could instantly tell they were the real deal. A quick look at their competition records only formalizes how good they looked on the floor. I was getting really pumped up to take classes from them.
The next day, all the dancers were assigned groups based on their dancing experience and level. Each group would take classes together for the rest of the week.
I personally thought the classes were good, since I managed to learn something in every one of them. Some of the many aspects of swing dancing that were covered included musicality, connection, styling, new moves, old moves rediscovered, and different styles, like Balboa and blues. There was something for everyone (except West Coast Swing).
At night, the social dance floor provided plenty of opportunities to practice what was learned during the day. People also just hung out, and many friendships were formed. There were many demos and competitions sprinkled in during the night, providing plenty of fuel for inspiration.
The event's environment was so engrossing that it would make the Emory bubble jealous. Food lost most of its meaning except for its necessity in facilitating more dancing. Seeing the sun rise at 6am was a gentle hint that it might be good idea to head to bed. There were velociraptor competitions. For a week, it was all about having fun.
I would recommend the trip for everyone even remotely interested in swing dancing. Good dancing is contagious and your dacing will improve greatly. You will meet all sorts of interesting people, and you will have plenty of memories to write about, like I am right now.
The best moment of the whole trip happened on the day before we left for home. We were supposed to check out at noon the next day, so we had plenty of time for some late night dancing action. Matt asked me what time my flight was, since he had offered to give me a ride, and I said 2pm. The drive back to Atlanta would take more than 4 hours, and it meant that we would have to wake up early. Matt didn't say anything, but his face betrayed a look of shock and contempt. 10 seconds later, his expression unchanged and now staring a spot on the wall right next to me, I realized that my physical safety was at risk, so I finally revealed that I was actually leaving from Asheville airport.