It’s nights like last night that remind me why I like swing dancing so much. There are very few things or places where one can arrive knowing no one in a place you’ve never been, even with mediocre language skills, and immediately engage in an activity that is not only entertaining, but allows you to meet new people and make new friends from all over the world.

I’ve found so far on my trip that it’s really refreshing to dance in a new city, especially a foreign one. In London, dancing at the 100 Club was great and every bit worthy of the praise I had heard about it from people in the states. But Paris may have them beat. We danced on a small plaza in a park right on the Seine, with just a small speaker system. Because it was out in the open, there were plenty of tourists and passersby who would stop to watch. Tour boats would drive by every few minutes, usually with people clapping. It was awesome.

To top things off, I met and talked to an awesome dancer from San Francisco named Erin. She’s here for the summer studying at the Sorbonne. Besides being a great dancer, she was really fun to talk to. In fact, when the dancing ended, we just stayed right through and talked till 3 AM, all the time watching people out and about and experiencing Paris at night. It was perhaps my best experience in the city (which, by the way, is great). I wish I could stay longer.

Tonight, it’s on to Rome. A couple of the people that were with me here have already left for Scotland, and my friend Abhinab and I are catching a late flight into Ciampino. Rome should be just as interesting as Paris, and in some ways much more so, since I don’t speak any Italian at all. Hopefully I’ll find some dancing there too.

Posted on July 28th, 2004 by Lee
Filed under: Uncategorized