Tag Archives: Lisbon

Tango class in Lisbon – Ochos with secada

Miriam taught Joao as a beginner here in Lisbon 12 years ago – she first started Tango in Buenos Aires in 1988. Today I was fortunate enough to be invited to her apartment for a lesson with Joao. Here they show adding a sacada to Ochos where the leader steps through – sorry I don’t know the real name for this..


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It was very enjoyable – even if the teachers are way too experienced for a beginner like me – what a great privilege – and so much fun!

Lisbon : the journey continues

Lisbon old quarter – the Alfama – provided a really great chance today to get lost in twisting alleys and spend a really pleasant few hours taking photos. I also sampled some great wine in the ‘Do Castelo’ wine bar – which I really recommend if like me you love wine but know nothing about Portuguese varieties and vineyards – really helpful and knowledgeable staff.

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Followed by a drive round Lisbon to the west to meet one of Joao’s Tango teachers for a lesson – then a drive East to meet another one – all in all a great day combining 3 of my greatest interests.

 

 

 

Lisbon : First Impressions

Found the hotel, walking around the narrow lanes near the castle, met for drinks at 1am – this city runs late for sure – and a quick visit to the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum this morning and here I am at lunchtime looking forward to my first Tango lesson this evening.

 

So what are my thoughts having never been to Lisbon before.

In many ways it seems to be exactly what I expected, a city with so much history but suffering from long periods of neglect, the recent economic problems – and perhaps most worryingly the fact that most young people no longer want to live in the city centre – they are running for the newer, safer houses in the suburbs.

All this creates great potential for just the kind of photography I love to take – I look forward to the next few days.

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My great surprise is the language – just how different it sounds from Spanish. Having an extremely basic vocabulary in Spanish from a long time ago, I expected at least to be able to understand something of simple basic conversations – but no – not a word.