Wednesday 23rd April - My First Flamenco Dance Lesson

Yes, I have done it!  My first Flamenco

dance lesson with committed Sevillianas who all seem to be 10ft tall with wiry bodies & determined looks of concentration on their faces.  In I come, as a novice, (not exactly tall or sinewy), into what seems like an advanced class.  The teacher, the only male in the room, is short, thin & powerful & accepts me into his class without a care in the world & tells me (in Spanish) that he recently had another Australian in his class.  So the music starts, my arms & hands are flying everywhere as I try to copy the dancers in front of me.  I have to pinch myself that I am taking part in this extraordinary dance where you do not need a partner & yet the passion is palpable with at least twenty pairs of feet stomping on the ground.  This is coupled with swaying bodies, amazing arm & hand movements & a live guitarist in a relatively small room.  It is quite intoxicating!  I am determined to buy my flamenco skirt before my next class on Monday!  The classes are held in Triana (refer to my blog 20/4/14) separated from Seville by the Guadalquivir River, but connected by a number of bridges, the main one being Puerta Isabel II.  As I walked home there was a glorious sunset which I managed to photograph.  Also the crowds have gone, the trams are now running & the barricades have come down.  Seville almost feels like home to me!