Al mal tiempo, buena cara

(To bad weather, good face)

After reading the title of this post, you might think that I'm having a hard time and I need to cheer up.

Well, fortunately that is very far from the truth :-)

For those who have been asking me, I'm very well and I'm looking forward to be back with Zlata and also for this new great experience that is to become father! (No, no pictures of the belly or the baby yet :-P maybe in the next post).

Then, back to the title of this post, I will have to start sharing what moved me to start writing this post.

One evening I was chating with a new friend who is also a Salsa passionate. She was in fact asking about the Salsa lessons that I give, what type of style and other technicalities about Salsa and my experience teaching.

I then explained her that the Salsa I teach is what I call "Street Salsa"... she asked me "What is that? Is like N.Y. style or L.A. style?" (btw, isn't if funny for you to consider that some people labeled the Salsa N.Y. and L.A style? specially since Salsa was started in the Caribbean, not in the US...)


After showing a "wide smile" emoticon ( :-D ) to her, I just explained that the Salsa I teach is the salsa I learned at home with friends in Venezuela and later in Colombia, so if I had to put a name to it, I would just call it "Street Salsa" because I learned it "en la calle" (in the street).

So for me "Street Salsa" is the salsa you dance to enjoy, to laugh while you dance, to improvise movements according to how you feel the music. So that is what I teach, to feel the music.

At this point she was very curious, specially since she shared with me that she was a little stressed since she had to be ready for some Latin Dances Examination she was going to have. I must confess (and she might be readign to this now and might be curoious about what I'm going to say... hehehe) that when I read that comment in the chat window I just smiled and told to myself:

"Yep, that is exactly the kind of salsa I DON'T teach..."

For me dancing must be fun, must be joyable and should not cause you stress. In fact, many of my students have said that they feel very relieved and relaxed after the lessons, and not because it is easy, because it is not, but because I find that if there is not joy in dancing, then the whole purpose of it is lost.


So, back to the title of the post... from Salsa, suddenly the conversation turned more into what is life about, about goals for life and other philosiphycal stuff... then it started to rain very strongly... few minutes before I just asked her why was she online at 1pm on a saturday (in my case I have a good excuse... called Time difference ;-) I was calling to Venezuela just before).

Then she replied that she had plans to go out, but now with the big rain it was better to stay at home... then I had one of the crazy thoughts I use to have from time to time and told her to try going out and enjoy of being just under the rain...

Of course the reaction was a virtual laugh followed by a:

- "So, to dance in the rain like kids?" to what I answered
- "why not...?"
- "I don't know... why don't you go then?"
- "That is in fact a very good question... brb"


I stood up and started to get ready... I put on my swiming shorts and a simple shirt.

At that same time, one of my flatmates was playing with his new digital camera, taking pictures all around the house and the surroundings, testing the effects of the rain for the pictures and so on...

I then went out, and at the begining I was just walking around, feeling the drops of water following gently on me.

Actually, it seems that if you are not running, the rain doesn't bother you, but just refresh you, and I didn't even felt so wet or anything... I was enjoying the time... and I even decided to try to give some dancing steps on the rain.

I must say that even it was a little weird at the beginning, at the end I just felt very relaxed and callmed.

The rain stoped, and I went back home, and my flatmate when he saw me he just started t laugh, and bellow you can see why...

First just walking around ad feeling the rain

Dancing in the rain

Dancing in the rain (closer)

Now to finish this post, I just want to take a phrase from Mark Twain that I like very much:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

--Mark Twain

Of course, dancing in the rain is nothing "heroic", but just think something... if you do not even dare to dance in the rain, or to do any other little gesture that can bring you some happiness, just because is "weird" or because you might look crazy... if you are stopped on such a simple thing... what makes you think you won't be stopped in more important things later?


Once again...


"...Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover..."



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When life bring changes, or when changes bring life

It's being a while since the last time I updated this blog, but lately I've been thinking a lot about the changes in my life in the past 2 years, and the new more changes for the years to come.

Just for you to know, when I started this blog, I decided that I didn't want to make a blog for telling my experiences, but that I wanted to use it mainly to share my thoughts.

This time, I do want to share my thoughts, but I can't avoid to share also the reason of them, which is directly connected to a wonderful event that is happening in my life...

But before getting there, I will go straight to the tittle of this post...


When life bring changes...

The only constant thing in life is change, and that is something you will find out if you haven't yet.

No matter how much you plan your life, there are events that will definitely change your life, some times immediately, some times after a while.

I'm not going to give you a lecture on how to overcome these changes, but I just want to share with you my thoughts about it.

For me, these last 2 years have been a huge shift in my life, thanks to the fortune all for good.

At the beginning of those 2 years, I was still finding myself (and to do that I had to travel some thousand kilometers, you see?!). At that time I had very clear ideas on how my experience would be: I will enjoy the 1.5 years in Estonia, and then I will go back to Venezuela to continue my own business.

Now, life has changed, and I'm in Kuala Lumpur starting a new chapter in my life, full of excitement and full of expectations.

Once again, the plans are being re-adjusted, but that is what has brought this wonderful spark in my life, the fact that life is not defined, and it is ready to be explored...


When changes bring life...

This is the part when I share the big event, and for those who are intuitive enough, would have guessed already what it is about due the tittle of this post.

Among the huge shifts that had happened in my life within these 2 years, the most special one was to find happiness and love in one person, that special person that is the main reason of these words (and the words from the prior post from many months ago too).

Our hearts met, and we are now sharing dreams, goals, moments and future.

And now, this big change in my life has brought a bigger one, which is the change of bringing a new life between us...

At the moment I'm writing these words, has passed 11 weeks since this new life has started to grow... Zlata and I are becoming parents!


The happiness in our hearts can only be compared with the immense love we have for each other and for our new little human "bean" (at this point looks like a little bean :-) )



I'm aware of the shift that this post have had... it started in a philosophical mood, but now it ended up very personal... but guess what... that is part of the wonderful changes that life brought to me!

Because now my life is not only mine... my life now has meaning because of this new family we are starting...

Dedicated to the love of my live... Mi Consentida... Zlata


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Search for reality...

Time have passed, as the same as places and people I have met.

On every place, there have been those experiences that leave you marks, or footprints. Those things that start to build a little of a new yourself.

And then again comes the question after that... What is reality? or what is real? and I don't mean it in a philosophical matter, but I would say more in an emotional and mental way of perceiving life, of following your dreams (or just keep dreaming itself).

I'm a dreamer, there is no doubt of that... And some times I've been admired by that, and some others I've been warned that it is not "the right way" to live.

And when I find this kind of persons, I just wonder what kind of life they had, what kind of experiences made them just decide that it is dangerous or not wise to follow your dreams. That instead it is better to "sentar cabeza" (from Spanish, "to seat down your head") because dreams can't fit in the "real world".

Right now I'm not going to say that they are right or wrong. I will just say that they had made a decision, as the same way I made a decision.

That is how I see life, it is a path of decisions you take, that leads you to the next experience, and for some, that experience is something they had always identified in their life, and for others there are always new experiences to discover.

In here, the important thing to consider is just that... the fact that you live YOUR life, the life you choose to live, and not the life you are expected to live, the life of others.

How was it in 2007...

I'm stealing this from Laurita's blog. In my case, I went through the first 9 questions and then just decided to answer them to get inspiration for my next post.

So, you can continue reading if you like, and you can also use these questions for yourself...

1. What did you do in 2007 that you'd never done before?
Joined a Skydiving group. Danced salsa on the ice (while ice skating). Jumped almost naked in the snow/lake after being in 80 to 100 degrees sauna.

2. Did you keep your New Year's Resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Not typical on me, though I still have 10 passes to go to the gym that I got on my birthday. I should really give a good use of it...

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My cousin Luisa Fernanda in Colombia, she gave birth to Juan.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
My grandma "Pepita" and Juan.

5. What countries did you visit?
Estonia (well, it's a loooong visit), Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Egypt, Greece, England, Hungary, Spain and bought the tickets to go to Turkey in Feb 2008.

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007?
It has been a very good year, even there has been tough moments, they are also very needed and even welcome. I would like a little more sun and chances to go to a nice beach though...

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
So far the only date I can always remember and that I can connect with some specific fact is the 24th of September (but actually of 2006) when I arrived in Estonia to start my new adventure. And the other "date" so far would be April (2008 though) since at the moment is the date that I have as an end of this experience and as a beginning of the next

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
That I have found good options for my next new adventure... stay tune for more details ;-)

9. What was your biggest failure?
To loose important people for me and to let myself go into depression due different circumstances.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
The worst I can remember was a terrible cold I got during Xmas, nothing more.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
All the airplane/boat/bus tickets to the places I've travelled :-)

12. Who made you happy this past year?
Puf! So many people I have met, it will be a very loooong list. I will summarise by saying the groups they belong to: International in Tallinn, AIESEC Estonia, friends that stay in touch virtually due distances :-) Thank you all of you!

13. Who made you depressed or left you disappointed?
I will not write down a name here, since anyway time is what will cure everything.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Go back to question number 5 and you will know ;-)

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Ideas, challenges, feeling the music and the energy it brings, mentoring.

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
Read the title of this blog...

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: happier or sadder?
Don't remember how I was feeling last year on this date, but I guess it was with a lot of expectations. Today, I'm more calm, although I'm still waiting for some things to concrete.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Have more challenges. Have done more exercise also (or dancing more too :-) there is never enough dancing!)

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worrying about external conditions and let them influence me and my choices.

20. Did you fall in love in 2007?
Yes.

23. How many one-night stands?
Those who made this questionnaire are very nosey...

24. What was your favorite TV program?
I have a TV, but I don't have cable. I use it only to connect my laptop to it and watch movies. Some really good ones: What the Bleep do we Know, Love and other disasters, The Corporation, L' Aubergue Espagnol, L' Aubergue Espagnol: Les Poupess Russes

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
I don't hate anyone, life is wonderful without hate. (I insist, very nosey people who made this questionnaire...)

26. What was the best book you read?
The 8th Habit, highly recommended.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Shantel! Disco Disco Partizani!!! hehehe... and some other Turkish artist, few songs but very good ones :-)

28. What did you want and got?
And unforgettable life-changing experience! I'm now looking forward for the next!

30. What was your favorite film of this year?
Check question 24, and add to the list: Persepolis

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Friends came home, we shared a great time together and then we went to a disco. The night ended with a very nice walk to the center with nice company, then back home and yep, I became 28 :-)

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Not big changes... shorter hair than previous years though, it seems that I'm becoming a little more formal... or maybe not...

34. What kept you sane?
Patience and good friends around.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Singers, among them: Ricardo Arjona, Alejandro Sanz and Gilberto Santa Rosa.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Venezuela.

37. Who did you miss?
Family in both places, Venezuela and Colombia. Good friends, although thanks to technology we have kept in touch. My father.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
Ankur and Zlata

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
For this question I will take the eight Paradoxical Commandment by Dr. Kent M. Keith because it in fact explains very well what I have learned this year...

"What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build it anyway"

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Ah! I will have to go back to the tittle of this blog... "La vida va y viene... y no se detiene..." (Life comes and goes... and it never stops)