V.I.P. Table Service at Noche Caleña: Cali Night In Vancouver

There are only three weeks left to the First EVER Noche Noche Caleña in Vancouver, at the Hungarian Cultural Center, 728 Kingsway.



Although V.I.P. Table or Bottle Service is very popular in Cali's Salsa Discoteques, for the benefit of those who never had the opportunity or desire to experience this service first hand, I would like to explain what exactly does a V.I.P. Table Reservation get you, should you, and why should you get one for your party.

Of course, there will be unreserved tables available where you can sit in between dances (we know, you will not be sitting much this night) and you do not NEED to buy V.I.P. Table Service for any number of people who wish to sit together at an unreserved table.


You do not NEED  so why would You WANT  V.I.P Table Service?!  If you have three or more people in your party, or you can "hook up" with friends and come togehter, V.I.P Table Service is not only convenient, but in fact, will save you money. At the Palacio, a V.I.P. Table will cost $100.00 per table. This includes cover charge coat check, Reserved Seating, V.I.P. Host Service (no standing in line for YOU!) a bottle of either  Canadian Bird (Grey Goose)  or Fidel Castro (Baccardi) or Tequila of your choice.  Complimentary juice, pop or sparkling water and ice as well as table service all through the night for a minimum of five, and a maximum of ten people in your party is included. You will not miss out on even one good song during the night standing in line at the bar while everyone else is dancing.  (Service charges. i.e. tips for your server,  are not included)





There is no minimum number of people that can reserve a V.I.P. Table, but the $100.00 Table Fee covers a maximum of five people. If there are more people in your party, by any means, they can share your table and bottle but they will have to pay their own cover.

Warning!: This being the very first  Cali Night in Vancouver, and at least three Birthday Celebrations (including Yours Truly's Half Century Birthday Bash) happening that night,  the demand for V.I.P. tables is very high. If you arrive early, (before 10PM) and someone did not show up to claim their reserved table, you might be able to buy  V.I.P. Table Service  on a first come, first serve basis. Please keep in mind, that there are only a LIMITED number of tables available for this purpose: we want to make everyone feel welcome, and have a table to sit at, and V.I.P. table would not be special, if it was not exclusive!

In fact, there are at least three birthdays celebrated at Cali Night in Vancouver on September 17th , including Your Truly's Half Century (I just can't say or write it out loud in numbers, sorry) Birthday Bash, so 3 out of the five available tables are already spoken for. 

Reserve your VIP Table Service: by calling 778-397-1339, by e-mail http://www.blogger.com/gitanagitana@live.com or send a private message on our Facebook Page, El Palacio De La Musica Latina.

To reserve a table in advance, we will require a fifty percent deposit no later than September 9th, 2010. You may pay by cash, money order or pay pal, contact 778-397-1339 or send an e-mail to gitanagitana@live.com for details. Pre reserved V.I.P. tables will be held until 10PM (in other words, you and your party must arrive before 10PM, or else, we reserve the right to "bump" you; you will not have to pay cover charge to come in, but you and your party will not get the reserved table, bottle service, or the other perks. If you do not show up at all, we will miss you dearly, you will miss all the fun, and your reservation deposit will not be refunded.

Cubans Think They CAN Dance and Proving it at SYTYCD Season Three

First there was our own Arrassay Reyes, now there is Yonni....watch Cubanito KILLING Salsa (in spite of the rather unfortunate song selection by whoever...just saying...

Watch the video of Yonni's performance here.

Latin Dancing: Just What The Doctor Ordered

Although I've been a dancer all my childhood and early adulthood, there was a period of my life, during my first marriage and after my diverce, when I stopped dancing. My ex was not only not a dancer, but he hated dancing (at least, me, his wife dancing) with a passion, for reasons unknown, and surely unreasonable: I believe, not being a dancer himself, he was secretly jelaous of the passion, joy and fun that he could not have access to, and like a miser, he did not want anyone else to have those benefits either, especially not his wife.

Several years after my divorce, I was at one time recovering from a particulary devastating and profound episode of depression. I was already including regular exercise (weights and body building) into my treatment, and I started to dance again: I started to bellydance and gypsy dance , and I danced as if "no one was watching", in the safety of knowing, that indeed, no one WAS watching: I would limit my dancing pleasure to the privacy and solitude of my living room.

Curtesy to medication, meditation, praying, exercise, and my solitary dancing routine, my depression slowly lifted, but I was still suffering from social anxiety: it is hard to believe for anyone who knows me now, but I could not be in a room or a place where there were strangers, or more than a few people present. I would get an anxiety attack just by thinking about such situations, and I would get panic attacks from even walking in a park, or on the sea walk, if it was busy, and people came too close for comfort as they were approaching or walking by.

As a part of my "desentisizing" routine, my doctor ordered that I should start going to places where there are groups of people I don't necessarily have to interact with all at once, and he suggested I choose an activity I like to do, so the enjoyment factor and the "happy hormones" can overide the "anxiety" and "panic" hormones. I thought, I should start social dancing, except, I had no idea where to go.

As much as I suffered from social anxiety, as a single woman, I could also not imagine to go dancing all by msyelf. I enlisted a cuban guy friend of mine as my escort. The problem was, that he was also new to Canada, and at that time, no one really danced cuban style salsa in Vancouver. He was frustuated, because, although he certanly knew how to dance, he had problems finding dance partners with whom he could actually dance. The two of us decided to take salsa lessons L.A. style, and the rest...well, it is, like my social anxiety, a history.

I LIKED latin dance so much, that eventually, when my friend was unwilling or unable to come with me (I started to go out as much as six to seven times a week!), I ventured out on my own. Sure enough, sometimes I sat for half an hour or more in my car, self affirming, and psyching msyelf up to the challenge of entering a hall FULL of people, loud music, and LOTS of interactions, but eventually, I would go inside, and within five minutes of latin music, latin dancing, I was so happy, so alive, I could not even IMAGINE to be depresesd or to have a panic attack!

In the fifteen or so years since passed, I've learned how to salsa L.A. style, New York Style, Miami Style, and cuban style. Well, I even learned how to lead, so that I could "interact" and not waste even one song, not five minutes that could have been spent dancing, when no male partners were available.

Salsa dancing (and merengue dancing, and bachata dancing, and cumbia dancing, and all kind of latin dancing I dabbed into) did not only "cure" my depression and social anxiety: it literally saved my life. Not to mention, it improved my love and sex life. I've met Jose, my Latin Lover, Latin Dance Partner, colombian cook, D.J. and husband on the dance floor. Salsa (Colombian Style, baby!) literally brought us together.

There is as saying, that couples who dance together, stay together. I can certanly say, that dacning together enriches our married life: often, when we have an disagreement or grudge, either or both of us are in a bad mood, we might arrive e to the latin dance event hardly talking to each other, but surely, we leave a few hours later much happier, much closer, in a better mood, much more passionate for each other, and yes, hornier too!

Do I still have depression and social anxiety? Yes, as the matter of fact, I do. But, not many people who only know me through events and places that involve latin dancing know this, or can even believe that I do, because as soon as there is latin music, and latin dancing available, like Cindarealla transformed from a drab kitchen slave into a princess at the ball, I transform from a depressed, anxious, and worrysome individual into who I really am: A passionate, shameless, outgoing, wild, dancing queen.

I still do not dance as if "no one is watching": now, I dance as if God is watching, which I am sure, that He is, and She enjoys dancing with me too.


For more information on the scientific proof and explanation of the health benefits of dancing, especially Salsa dancing (did you know salsa dancing burns 434 calories an hour?!), check out the article at this link: The Health Benefits of Dancing -- Including Specific Benefits of Different Dances by www.SixWise.com

TGIF: ITFS Salsa Nights Around the World

A friend sent me a video of  a Friday Salsa Night in Adelaide, USA and I was struck by the similarities between this video and the ones made right here in Vancouver, BC, on Friday Night around town. It made me think about the literally tens of thousands of people, no, hundreds of thousands, millons, whom, after a week of work, start the weekend with Friday Salsa Nights.

Salsa perhaps COULD unite the world. Imagine: no war, no conflict, just a bunch of happy salsa dancers.

The following collection of videos is what I found on the internet, under the tags of "salsa" and "friday". I can't even tell the origin of some of these videos, but that is nice, in a way. It just shows, that it could have been taken anywhere,  in a hall, club, or someone's basement, on Friday night. Because..
Thanks God, Its Friday,  and It's Time for SALSA!









This one comes from israel, if I am not mistaken:Israel




This one is from Frankfurt, Germany




This is from Budapest, Hungary




Saarbrucken, Germany





Greece




Italy




Portugal



Russia




Japan



Korea

Brazil!




 BrazilFest is on this weekend in Vancouver, and I thought, it is a great time to talk about Dances of Brazil. Of course, everyone knows and associates Brazil with Samba, and the Carneval. But Brazil has so much more than Samba to boast about. The following article adopted from Kwintesential is a good start to find out about Brazilian dance.

Although some would argue that Capoeira is a form of dance as well, it is not included in this post, but you can learn more about this Brazilian dance/sport/art of self defense by reading The Hidden History of Capoeira: A Collision of Cultures in the Brazilian Battle Dance.

 After all that reading,   let's go to the festival on August 21st to witness and personally experience what we have learned!



Brazil's mixed and multicultural past has come together to create some of the finest music and dance on the planet. With influences from three continents there are perhaps three main genres that one should learn about before going to Brazil.
Samba: The samba is perhaps the most popular of music in Brazil and also very well known overseas. The music and accompanying dance originated from black slaves living in Rio de Janeiro. It is said that it was first performed at the Rio carnival in 1917. Due to its roots lying in slavery, the music naturally has many African influences. This is most noticeable in the unique rhythm which is linked to the Angolan tam-tam. This gave samba both its characteristic music and dance steps. By the 1930s, and due to the impact of radio, samba was huge. This decade saw what was to become the "Golden Age of Samba". One of the most famous musicians of this time was Carmen Miranda, who starred in many Hollywood musicals. She was also well known for her costumes that used fruit - an image that still pervades to this day. During the 1950s and 60s samba's popularity as Brazil's number one music and dance diminished due to the change in tastes.
Bossa Nova: The bossa nova entered Brazil's music and dance scene in the 1950s. At the time it was seen as fresh, modern and challenging music and took not only Brazil but the world by storm. It appeared at a time of change and was very much associated with the university movements. Bossa nova brought with it a new way of singing and playing music; one that was less operatic and more natural, quieter and relaxed. Leading figures included Joao Gilberto, Baden Powell, Nara Leao and Elis Regina.
Tropicalismo: Just as the bossa nova followed the samba, the new sound called tropicalismo burst onto the music and dance scene of Brazil in the late 1960s. The core message of the genre was that all styles were valid. As a result figures such as Gilberto Gil, Rita Lee and Gal Costa incorporated various styles and traditions in their music. This resulted in some very innovative sounds as instruments previously unheard of together were blended to create a whole new sound.
For more information on the music and dance of Brazil visit All Brazilian Music.


Colombian Salsa in Medellin, Colombia Prepares for the Flower Festival

The flower festival in Medellin is perhaps the largest folkloric festival held in Colombia after the Barranquilla Carnival in January.
The festival was born in the 1950s to celebrate the importance of the flower growers in the region near Medellin. Cut flowers are one of the most important agricultural export industry in Colombia. Currently Colombia supplies about 70% of the flowers sold in the United States.
Originally the festival was just a parade of flower growers mostly from the Santa Elena county, they would make large flower arrangements and walk a few blocks in the downtown area showing their products to the people gathered along the streets but eventually the parade grew and the flower growers started making more elaborate flower arrangements until now when the public can see huge flower arrangements called “silletas”, some of them so huge that have to be carried by three or four people. Some silletas measure up to 4 meters (13 ft.) in diameter. The flower arrangements are very varied, some are just intricate arrangements of flowers, others depict landscapes, faces, diverse figures. Nowadays the flower parade includes hundreds of flower growers carrying Silletas, dance groups, bands playing local music. The public stands on the sidewalks along the route.
The flower festival has become the most important festival in Medellin.

But the flower festival is not just the parade, it´s an entire week of different activities and events that take place in and near Medellin.
Some other interesting events are the Horse Parade, which is already listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest horse parade in the world the Orchid – Birds and Flowers exposition at the botanical gardens (all week, July 29th – August 8th), the Old Car Parade (in which people driving the old cars use costumes of the year the car was made, people can even see a couple of Model T Fords ), the Riding Horse Show , the children´s flower parade ), The Music Band Festival , Arrieros – Mulas y Fondas (a street festival of typical food, drinks and activities from neighboring towns, at the La 70 street), San Alejo handcrafts market ( Parque Bolivar).
During the week of the festival, there are “tablados” in several streets in the city, Tablados are street parties, the streets are closed and there are bands playing for the public.



Article adopted from http://poorbuthappy.com/colombia/post/flower-festival-in-medellin-2004/ By ColombiaBoard posted on Jul 25, 2004, 09:59 in Friendly Talkzone

Salsa History of Salsa Dancing


History of Salsa Dance and Music

Salsa is not easily defined. Who invented salsa? The Cubans, Puerto Ricans? Salsa is a distillation of many Latin and Afro-Caribbean dances. Each played a large part in its evolution.
Salsa is similar to Mambo in that both have a pattern of six steps danced over eight counts of music. The dances share many of the same moves. In Salsa, turns have become an important feature, so the overall look and feel are quite different form those of Mambo. Mambo moves generally forward and backward, whereas, Salsa has more of a side to side feel.

A look at the origin of Salsa

By: Jaime Andrés Pretell
It is not only Cuban; nevertheless we must give credit to Cuba for the origin and ancestry of creation. It is here where Contra-Danze (Country Dance) of England/France, later called Danzón, which was brought by the French who fled from Haiti, begins to mix itself with Rhumbas of African origin (Guaguanco, Colombia, Yambú). Add Són of the Cuban people, which was a mixture of the Spanish troubadour (sonero) and the African drumbeats and flavora and a partner dance flowered to the beat of the clave.
This syncretism also occurred in smaller degrees and with variations in other countries like the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Puerto Rico, among others. Bands of these countries took their music to Mexico City in the era of the famous films of that country (Perez Prado, most famous ...). Shortly after, a similar movement to New York occurred. In these two cities, more promotion and syncretism occurred and more commercial music was generated because there was more investment.
New York created the term "Salsa", but it did not create the dance. The term became popular as nickname to refer to a variety of different music, from several countries of Hispanic influence: Rhumba, Són Montuno, Guaracha, Mambo, Cha cha cha, Danzón, Són, Guguanco, Cubop, Guajira, Charanga, Cumbia, Plena, Bomba, Festejo, Merengue, among others. Many of these have maintained their individuality and many were mixed creating "Salsa".
If you are listening to today's Salsa, you are going to find the base of són, and you are going to hear Cumbia, and you are going to hear Guaracha. You will also hear some old Merengue, built-in the rhythm of different songs. You will hear many of the old styles somewhere within the modern beats. Salsa varies from site to site. In New York, for example, new instrumentalization and extra percussion were added to some Colombian songs so that New Yorkers - that dance mambo "on the two" - can feel comfortable dancing to the rhythm and beat of the song, because the original arrangement is not one they easily recognize.
This is called "finishing", to enter the local market. This "finish" does not occur because the Colombian does not play Salsa, but it does not play to the rhythm of the Puerto Rican/Post-Cuban Salsa. I say Post-Cuban, because the music of Cuba has evolved towards another new and equally flavorful sound.
Then, as a tree, Salsa has many roots and many branches, but one trunk that unites us all. The important thing is that Salsa is played throughout the Hispanic world and has received influences of many places within it. It is of all of us and it is a sample of our flexibility and evolution. If you think that a single place can take the credit for the existence of Salsa, you are wrong. And if you think that one style of dance is better, imagine that the best dancer of a style, without his partner, goes to dance with whomever he can find, in a club where a different style predominates. He wouldn't look as good as the locals. Each dancer is accustomed to dance his/her own style. None is better, only different. Viva la variedad, Viva la Salsa!
Jazz Oral Interview of ISRAEL LÓPEZ "CACHAO"
Highlights by FRANK M. FIGUEROA
The interviewer asked Cachao what he thought about salsa music and performers who called themselves salseros. His answer, which is typical of most of the "old guard" musicians, was a total repudiation of the term. As far as he is concerned it is all Cuban music and salsa is a term that has more relation to the kitchen than to music. He jokingly said that there should be a law against anybody calling himself a salsero.


Read more: Salsa History of Salsa Dancing http://www.centralhome.com/ballroomcountry/salsa.htm#ixzz0x05IWBxs
Dance, Fitness & Sports CentralHome

First Time In Vancouver!

Noche Caleña: Cali Night In Vancouver



DJ Jose "Tutuy" De Cali, Colombia Presents:

El Palacio De La Musica Latina
THE NEWEST AND VERY BEST OF LATIN MUSIC

Salsa
Bachata
Mambo
Cumbia
Meringue
Pachanga
Boogaloo
Tropical
Crossover


FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17TH, 2010
8PM to 2AM


AT THE HUNGARIAN CULTURAL CENTER
728 KINGSWAY




 HUGE Dance Floor
Fully Airconditioned

Doors open at 8PM. 

Complimentary Salsa Lesson at 8:30

Cover: $10.00 Two for One B4 10PM