Wow! Where to begin....tonight we had a Tambores show at VENUSA. It is a dance to tribal drums brought over from Africa when the slaves came to Venezuela. It is a very animalistic, raw, crazy dance to a very strong beat. Everybody gets into a big circle and one pair at a time (one man and one woman) dance until somebody butts in and takes over. Basically you just move your feet as fast as you can and move your hips even faster. When the male comes close to the women she is supposed to push him away and then keep dancing. He then pursues her again. It's so crazy! I felt very uncomfortable watching and then two of the five tambores guys literally cornered me and dragged me into the middle of the circle. I did not want to take any part in this!! Well, I had to so I tried the best I could. haha Then after that they taught us a different way to dance. Poor Ellie volunteered herself. hahahaha She had to dance in the middle shaking her hips a certain way while the tambores guy got down on the ground like an alligator and CHASED AFTER HER!! He was ramming into her legs and butt looking like he was going to bite her!! I was crying I was laughing so hard. WHAT?! Craziest dance ever. Then they needed tres mujeres and Ellie volunteered the two of us, plus a venezolana. Luckily, this demonstration didn't involve any chasing, just the caderas (hips). People told me I did really well and that I could move my hips!!
Overall it was a great night! full of laughter! We are planning a beach trip to Choroni and they have tambores there in the night. I guess since I already know how to do the dance I might as well take part! :)
