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Although the new social media route such as ‘facebook’ opens up opportunities to socialize and meet other singles out there, there is nothing better than meeting people through a social activity such as salsa dancing. In fact, it is one of the social activities that not only allows you to meet other people but also you can keep fit and healthy.

Unfortunately, there are people, in particular men who may have a stigma associated with dancing and possibly the time, patience and energy that are required to learn this skill. However, the rewards of learning a skill such as this can be far greater than the time and effort invested initially in mastering the skill.

In some dances such as Argentinian Tango, the dance can be addictive for many people who have mastered it and they will continue to engage in this activity for many years to come.

There is never a time than now to start learning salsa which is enjoyed by millions of people around the world. So get into the habit, find a venue near you and see how easily you can pick up on this dance and at the same time have lots of fun!

- End

It was drizzling a bit and I came through hwy 13 that changes into a winding road called Ashby Ave and meanders into south of Berkeley.

I was mightily pleased with this route, which meant a mere 30 minutes travel from door to door.

To get to the venue you need to take a right turn into Shattuck Ave from Ashby Ave and it’s about a mile or so up the road.

It wasn’t obvious where the place was located exactly on my Iphone GPS and I parked at the nearby university parking lot on Fulton St. a short distance away.

I couldn’t be sure what the parking is like around the venue but for sure, you can park in the spot I found without any trouble.

The Bart station is right next to the place and the junction reminded me of the Times Square in New York albeit smaller.

It was drizzling a bit and I came through hwy 13 that changes into a winding road called Ashby Ave and meanders into south of Berkeley.

I was mightily pleased with this route, which meant a mere 30 minutes travel from door to door.

To get to the venue you need to take a right turn into Shattuck Ave from Ashby Ave and it’s about a mile or so up the road.

It wasn’t obvious where the place was located exactly on my Iphone GPS and I parked at the nearby university parking lot on Fulton St. a short distance away.

I couldn’t be sure what the parking is like around the venue but for sure, you can park in the spot I found without any trouble.

The Bart station is right next to the place and the junction reminded me of the Times Square in New York albeit smaller.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 2 >>>

As you enter the venue, you have to go down a flight of stairs where a couple of people greet you to collect the money and stamp your hand.

On that Wednesday night, the band Conjunto Taino was set to play on stage and I arrived early for the beginning class.

The cost of entry was $10 but if you go to their website http://www.shattuckdownlow.com I noticed that the cost is only $5 for advance and you can buy the ticket online.

Sounds like a very good deal if you get the ticket ahead in advance, but $10 for class and a live band seems like a deal too.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 3 >>>

There were already about 25-30 people lined up on the dance floor taking the class and I joined right in.

The class instructor was John Narvaez of Salsa Mania who also teaches in other venues such as the Just Dance Ballroom in Oakland.

He was showing the Cuban dance technique of salsa steps where weight, hip movement and placement are necessary for what can be described as a complex move to learn.

I could see from some of the students that they were getting it but for others the common mistake of the Cuban motion made by beginners was also obvious.

It’s a technique that is difficult to master but once you have it, it can look very nice.

Towards the end of the first class, he went through some exercises combining all the movements of going forward and back, side-to-side and breaking and then doing a turn which I thought was quite fun.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 4 >>>

Later, we moved to the partner class where we were shown the turn for the follower followed by a quarter turn by the man and then bringing the woman around with another turn.

When you start looking back at these moves more carefully, you appreciate the connection, force, position and all the things that come into play to make it work with the follower.

I can see how these kind of moves can appear difficult to the beginner and an effective teacher has not only understand this but be able to convey the information required by students in the class.

This is why I have told many people who are beginning to seriously consider taking private lessons.

It may appear expensive to you at first but the improvement in dancing and the self-confidence that comes as a result is priceless.

Private instruction allows the instructor to specifically focus one to one on the areas that need addressing and hence rapidly improve your learning.

I remember taking private lessons after 6 months into salsa and remembered how it changed my dancing altogether.

I didn’t have to know, the followers at that time who I danced with told me so.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 5 >>>

I sometimes enjoy the classes that I do before the main dancing event starts because you can always learn something knew and besides it allows you to socialize with other dancers before the main event.

During the rotation of the dancers in our partner class, I noticed how friendly the ladies were and this is an indication to me that the main event was also going to be fun.

It always pleases me to have a crowd that is inviting and friendly and it makes the whole evening an eventful and a memorable one.

Unlike Shaboom of San Ramon, which also happens to have a receptive clientele, the crowd in Shattuck was younger, probably because of the strong student community of Berkeley.

As we rotated, I always keep in my mind of the back-leading that woman have a tendency to do, however on this occasion I noticed that this aspect was not noticeable than in other places.

I would put this down to the average age of the followers and the correlation seems somewhat justified.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 6 >>>

After our class, we had some DJ music and were treated to some special performances by Salsa Mania dance troupes.

The performances on this occasion seemed somewhat better, tighter and stronger than what I had witnessed in the Just Dance Ballroom (link).

There seemed more energy and flare in the dances and it was a far cry from the previous performances I had seen.

Perhaps the smaller venue had something to do with this or they had more time where they had time to practice and improve since the last performances.

In all, there were three performances with the last one to me as the most exciting of all.

One aspect of the performance that can make all the difference in the dance in my opinion is to hit the beat at just the right time.

Since the music they had selected was fast paced and had eclectic highs, lows and abrupt stops, it seems only natural to hit those parts really well.

The last performance for a majority part of the routine did just that and it was very exciting and fun to watch.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 7 >>>

The salsa band started with a track that was to my liking, it had all the notes, music to really shine on the dance floor.

Luckily for me, I happened to catch a dancer who I had never met and seemed quite a good dancer.

We both seemed to be connecting well and I was able to do many of my moves with relative ease.

However, when you are engaged in this kind of dancing where you are having really good fun, it is not about the number of moves or types of moves but the whole experience as a whole.

Needless to say she enjoyed the dance very much as much as I did and said to me afterwards to save another dance for her.

Shattuck – Down Low Salsa Venue, Berkeley, CA – Part 8 >>>