Swinglandia 2008 Theme Party - Traditional
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Showing posts with label Ukraine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ukraine. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Monday, May 5, 2008
Kiev, Ukraine - Highlights
Many people were taking pictures of us constantly, even when we weren’t doing anything. Kevin and I could be standing talking, or eating, or wiggling, or anything, and a few people would take our picture. I am so grateful I am not famous on a Hollywood level because I am sure it would suck having every move recorded by strangers. It’s weird feeling like any of the small things you do are worth documenting, but that’s exactly what was happening, all weekend long.
The room we stayed in was WAY nicer than the previous one. However, this means that we were royally shafted last year. We also had heat this year (yet we sacrificed our hot water….it’s luke warm at best).
People were sneaking into our classes all weekend long. Perhaps it was because we are foreigners, or hopefully it was because people couldn’t get enough of our material. We would like to assume it’s the latter, but we’ll accept “both” as an answer.
People were totally digging the technique, and we knew this because all the classes were focused the whole time on the material. It was awesome to see people improve so much by the end of a class. In some cases it was night and day. That feeling is what keeps me teaching; I love feeling helpful!
I learned the Slip Slop Shim Sham along with the students and was still able to teach it. And it was tough. I was challenged mentally and physically. I dig it.
We recognize a number of the campers from last year and more of them speak English. I certainly enjoy that because I feel that they have a chance to improve more as Lindy Hoppers because LH is primarily taught in English (I am sure someone could challenge this statement).
Breakfast on Day Three was awesome. Those biscuit/English muffin things rocked my world! I was in such a great mood that day.
Kevin and I got to work on our routine and did some working out. We are pleased that we made time for our routine and to work out this weekend (even though we are working many hours and are very tired).
The room we stayed in was WAY nicer than the previous one. However, this means that we were royally shafted last year. We also had heat this year (yet we sacrificed our hot water….it’s luke warm at best).
People were sneaking into our classes all weekend long. Perhaps it was because we are foreigners, or hopefully it was because people couldn’t get enough of our material. We would like to assume it’s the latter, but we’ll accept “both” as an answer.
People were totally digging the technique, and we knew this because all the classes were focused the whole time on the material. It was awesome to see people improve so much by the end of a class. In some cases it was night and day. That feeling is what keeps me teaching; I love feeling helpful!
I learned the Slip Slop Shim Sham along with the students and was still able to teach it. And it was tough. I was challenged mentally and physically. I dig it.
We recognize a number of the campers from last year and more of them speak English. I certainly enjoy that because I feel that they have a chance to improve more as Lindy Hoppers because LH is primarily taught in English (I am sure someone could challenge this statement).
Breakfast on Day Three was awesome. Those biscuit/English muffin things rocked my world! I was in such a great mood that day.
Kevin and I got to work on our routine and did some working out. We are pleased that we made time for our routine and to work out this weekend (even though we are working many hours and are very tired).
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Kiev, Ukraine – Day Three
We barely got our asses up for breakfast this morning, but I was sooooooooo happy we did. I had an awesome breakfast here last year that was jam with a soft biscuit/crumpet/big English muffin thing and we had it this morning. We ate with Olivia and Natasha and talked about politics while trying to guess which country belonged to which flag on the side of the cereal box.
We taught 2 classes, had lunch, and then worked with the Advance plus group again. We messed their stuff up again!
After class, it was nap time for both me and Kevin. I also decided to skip dinner, because I'd rather sleep, but I ended up still nibbling. Immediately after dinner we taught our taster class.
The taster class was enormous. I had no idea we were going to have that many people. I continue to wonder whether it’s the material we are teaching or that we are foreigners (or that we are so darn funny and personable) that brings people in hordes to our classes. We taught the ballroom lift, the loop-de-loo, and the Jeremy. We would demo the move, give the class some pointers on what to look for, and then let them go. Everybody took what they needed from that class; the lower levels were able to absorb what we gave them while the advance dancer only needed the little we gave because they saw what the move took. Nice. I compared that class to a Disney film: there is content for children and the adults that must take them. The layers; the layers!!
After class we headed back to the room and watched some Talladega Nights and slowly got ready. At about 9:45pm we headed down to office and were give Ukrainian costumes to put on. Kev and I were going to open the show along with a few others. We had to sing a Ukrainian song, and truthfully, it was a little bit of a disaster, but it was fun. After that, we rushed backstage, changed back into our performance clothes, and then we immediately got back on stage and did Swingin’ at the Cotton Club. It went well as usual.
And then for the next hour and half we got to enjoy the show. For me, the highlights of the show were the fillers in between each number. There were four characters: wife, Ukrainian man, priest, and a Muscovite. There were drinking games, kissing games, card games, confusion, the YMCA, a baby mix-up, and so on. The four of them were quite the quadruplets!
Instead of going to bed after the performances like I should have, I ended up chatting in the little Ukrainian room with Olivia & Natasha, Terrance, Kevin, and Katia We chatted about holidays, family differences, public transportation, and military. The conversations I have had with this group have been some of the best in a while; very enlightening.
Kevin and I dragged ourselves back to our rooms by about 2:15am or so. Detective Kevin investigated whether or not we had hot water, and low and behold, we did. He showered and announced the water was hot and therefore I should shower while there was hot water. Even though I was in bed with the lights off, I dragged my booty to the shower for a warm rinse, and washed out my performance clothes. That was such a great shower.
Bed time.
We taught 2 classes, had lunch, and then worked with the Advance plus group again. We messed their stuff up again!
After class, it was nap time for both me and Kevin. I also decided to skip dinner, because I'd rather sleep, but I ended up still nibbling. Immediately after dinner we taught our taster class.
The taster class was enormous. I had no idea we were going to have that many people. I continue to wonder whether it’s the material we are teaching or that we are foreigners (or that we are so darn funny and personable) that brings people in hordes to our classes. We taught the ballroom lift, the loop-de-loo, and the Jeremy. We would demo the move, give the class some pointers on what to look for, and then let them go. Everybody took what they needed from that class; the lower levels were able to absorb what we gave them while the advance dancer only needed the little we gave because they saw what the move took. Nice. I compared that class to a Disney film: there is content for children and the adults that must take them. The layers; the layers!!
After class we headed back to the room and watched some Talladega Nights and slowly got ready. At about 9:45pm we headed down to office and were give Ukrainian costumes to put on. Kev and I were going to open the show along with a few others. We had to sing a Ukrainian song, and truthfully, it was a little bit of a disaster, but it was fun. After that, we rushed backstage, changed back into our performance clothes, and then we immediately got back on stage and did Swingin’ at the Cotton Club. It went well as usual.
And then for the next hour and half we got to enjoy the show. For me, the highlights of the show were the fillers in between each number. There were four characters: wife, Ukrainian man, priest, and a Muscovite. There were drinking games, kissing games, card games, confusion, the YMCA, a baby mix-up, and so on. The four of them were quite the quadruplets!
Instead of going to bed after the performances like I should have, I ended up chatting in the little Ukrainian room with Olivia & Natasha, Terrance, Kevin, and Katia We chatted about holidays, family differences, public transportation, and military. The conversations I have had with this group have been some of the best in a while; very enlightening.
Kevin and I dragged ourselves back to our rooms by about 2:15am or so. Detective Kevin investigated whether or not we had hot water, and low and behold, we did. He showered and announced the water was hot and therefore I should shower while there was hot water. Even though I was in bed with the lights off, I dragged my booty to the shower for a warm rinse, and washed out my performance clothes. That was such a great shower.
Bed time.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Kiev, Ukraine – Day Two
We skipped breakfast and decided to sleep in because we were beat. Our dance day started with the Advance-plus class and it took us about 45 minutes to break them. What I mean is that it took that amount of time to help them realize that they weren’t really leading, following, and/or balancing on their own. It was an awesome moment when the students realized what it took to actually move a follow and what it took to stay balanced. Fabulous!
By the end of class I was starving so we rushed up to lunch. We had chicken of some sort over rice and some beet salad (as in, just beets). We left lunch early so we could work on our routine a bit more and then hustled back for our advance class. But it was in vain because the teacher before us went over about 17 minutes (but who’s counting anyways?). I was not very pleased because that ate into our time with the advance dancers. Grrrrrrrrrr. Perhaps what perturbed me the most was the fact that the instructor didn’t acknowledge that Kevin and I were there for about 15 minutes, waiting. He didn’t look at us, say hi, say he was almost done…nothing. Not cool.
We ran the advance class 15 minutes into the next time slot and then did the same for the intermediate level too. I was really antsy until we started our final class because I don’t like running classes that late. I feel bad about making people wait that long because it’s rude. Now, that said, I myself and not a terribly punctual person, but 15 minutes without a heads up is inconsiderate. I am done sitting on my high horse. :-D
We ate dinner and headed back to the room for a quick nap. At 8pm we taught our Slides Taster and it was the most work I’ve ever done in a class. We taught the Slip Slop Shim Sham which means Kevin danced it and I put words/mnemonics to it so people could do it. At the beginning we had a bunch of students, but as the class progressed, we started losing people. We still had a fair number at then end (started at 75, ended at 50) and they were all drenched! It was awesome. Hopefully a video of it will be posted and then I’ll link it.
After class we came back to our darling little room, I showered and did laundry while Kev watched a movie, and then it was nap time. We needed to judge J&J prelims and finals which were going to start around 1am again.
At 12:30am people came to knock on our door to wake us up. We were already awake, but it was helpful. Many of the campers were dressed as witches, fairies, goblins, or other such fanciful characters while Kevo and I were in all black. We were also told that we missed out on all of the shows that were put on. Sigh – you can’t win them all.
The J&J was fun to watch and all the judges’ scores were very similar. A jam soon after broke out and Kevin did some handstand stuff….the pictures are sure to be great. I found some butter in the kitchen to put on some bread which made me a happy camper. And now we are off to bed.
Goodnight.
By the end of class I was starving so we rushed up to lunch. We had chicken of some sort over rice and some beet salad (as in, just beets). We left lunch early so we could work on our routine a bit more and then hustled back for our advance class. But it was in vain because the teacher before us went over about 17 minutes (but who’s counting anyways?). I was not very pleased because that ate into our time with the advance dancers. Grrrrrrrrrr. Perhaps what perturbed me the most was the fact that the instructor didn’t acknowledge that Kevin and I were there for about 15 minutes, waiting. He didn’t look at us, say hi, say he was almost done…nothing. Not cool.
We ran the advance class 15 minutes into the next time slot and then did the same for the intermediate level too. I was really antsy until we started our final class because I don’t like running classes that late. I feel bad about making people wait that long because it’s rude. Now, that said, I myself and not a terribly punctual person, but 15 minutes without a heads up is inconsiderate. I am done sitting on my high horse. :-D
We ate dinner and headed back to the room for a quick nap. At 8pm we taught our Slides Taster and it was the most work I’ve ever done in a class. We taught the Slip Slop Shim Sham which means Kevin danced it and I put words/mnemonics to it so people could do it. At the beginning we had a bunch of students, but as the class progressed, we started losing people. We still had a fair number at then end (started at 75, ended at 50) and they were all drenched! It was awesome. Hopefully a video of it will be posted and then I’ll link it.
After class we came back to our darling little room, I showered and did laundry while Kev watched a movie, and then it was nap time. We needed to judge J&J prelims and finals which were going to start around 1am again.
At 12:30am people came to knock on our door to wake us up. We were already awake, but it was helpful. Many of the campers were dressed as witches, fairies, goblins, or other such fanciful characters while Kevo and I were in all black. We were also told that we missed out on all of the shows that were put on. Sigh – you can’t win them all.
The J&J was fun to watch and all the judges’ scores were very similar. A jam soon after broke out and Kevin did some handstand stuff….the pictures are sure to be great. I found some butter in the kitchen to put on some bread which made me a happy camper. And now we are off to bed.
Goodnight.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Kiev, Ukraine – Day One
Oxana made us breakfast this morning; what a great way to wake up! We had some combo of bread and butter/jam/honey, tea, and a sampling of meat and cheese. Our ride came to pick us up on time and of course we weren’t quite ready. Andrei enjoyed some tea while Kev and I wolfed down our food. Andrei had a perfect British accent, but was Ukrainian.
As we grabbed our luggage, I realized the handle on my suitcase wouldn’t open all the way. Man!! That sucks. Actually, it will suck when I have to roll it around the airport. Moving along. We stuffed our luggage into the trunk of his 1985 Lada (which looked like a 1960’s Fiat) and then stuffed ourselves into the backseat. It was somewhat roomy, which was a pleasant change from last year. Previously, six of us were crammed into at 5-seater Volvo AND we had all of our luggage on our laps. ALL of our luggage.
We stopped at a grocery store so we could grab snacks and water for our trip and then we were off. Or so we thought. We picked up another person and their luggage. Kevin and I thought we were going to have a comfortable ride to camp, which we did more so than the previous year; however, there were five people in the car, a few bags, and a sound system. Wow.
A video of part of the ride:
About 30 minutes later we arrive at camp and it was exactly as it was last year, except there were more dogs around and the weather was warmer. We got our room key at the reception and then dragged ourselves (and luggage) upstairs three flights and then slowly opened the door. We didn’t really know what to expect because last year the room could have been compared to “camping indoors”, but perhaps this year would be different. We walked in the room and sun was shinning through the new door/window combo. It was double pained and it was lovely. And warm! The heat was on this time (last year they didn’t turn the heat on until it started snowing)!!
The beds were a bit nicer, we had a TV and refrigerator, and the bathroom had a mirror (last year I have been stolen from the room) and a toilet seat! OMG, it was fabulous! As time went we realized how badly we had been shafted last year.
We taught three classes today and chose who would be in the advance plus class. We taught technique under the guise of dancing, as per usual, and the lower levels were awesome! They were so ready to learn because they were still in the place of “I don’t know very much, but I am here to learn” whereas the higher levels think they know a lot , which they do, but they aren’t actually leading or following movement, just patterns.
On top of that, we also worked on our new routine for two hours, got dressed up in traditional Ukrainian garb and did a skit for the camp and then judged the J&J prelims which started at 1am. Holy tired teachers Batman! Here is a clip of Kevin and I doing our “Dress Up and Dance in Costume’s in Ukraine” clip:
(here is a link to last years silliness)
As we grabbed our luggage, I realized the handle on my suitcase wouldn’t open all the way. Man!! That sucks. Actually, it will suck when I have to roll it around the airport. Moving along. We stuffed our luggage into the trunk of his 1985 Lada (which looked like a 1960’s Fiat) and then stuffed ourselves into the backseat. It was somewhat roomy, which was a pleasant change from last year. Previously, six of us were crammed into at 5-seater Volvo AND we had all of our luggage on our laps. ALL of our luggage.
We stopped at a grocery store so we could grab snacks and water for our trip and then we were off. Or so we thought. We picked up another person and their luggage. Kevin and I thought we were going to have a comfortable ride to camp, which we did more so than the previous year; however, there were five people in the car, a few bags, and a sound system. Wow.
A video of part of the ride:
About 30 minutes later we arrive at camp and it was exactly as it was last year, except there were more dogs around and the weather was warmer. We got our room key at the reception and then dragged ourselves (and luggage) upstairs three flights and then slowly opened the door. We didn’t really know what to expect because last year the room could have been compared to “camping indoors”, but perhaps this year would be different. We walked in the room and sun was shinning through the new door/window combo. It was double pained and it was lovely. And warm! The heat was on this time (last year they didn’t turn the heat on until it started snowing)!!
The beds were a bit nicer, we had a TV and refrigerator, and the bathroom had a mirror (last year I have been stolen from the room) and a toilet seat! OMG, it was fabulous! As time went we realized how badly we had been shafted last year.
We taught three classes today and chose who would be in the advance plus class. We taught technique under the guise of dancing, as per usual, and the lower levels were awesome! They were so ready to learn because they were still in the place of “I don’t know very much, but I am here to learn” whereas the higher levels think they know a lot , which they do, but they aren’t actually leading or following movement, just patterns.
On top of that, we also worked on our new routine for two hours, got dressed up in traditional Ukrainian garb and did a skit for the camp and then judged the J&J prelims which started at 1am. Holy tired teachers Batman! Here is a clip of Kevin and I doing our “Dress Up and Dance in Costume’s in Ukraine” clip:
(here is a link to last years silliness)
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