On an uncharacteristically nebulous Sunday evening in Puerto Vallarta approximately 100 people congregated to move their bodies to the rhythm of the Banderas Bay ocean waves on a white, two-level catamaran. This made Feb. 28th, 2010 the official inauguration of the first salsa boat cruise in Vallarta. “This will be interesting. I’m excited to see how it turns out, “said Gustavo Camacho a new resident of Vallarta who is just starting to take salsa classes.
The day began with a salsa workshop given by Lucho Giraldes, Argentinian salsa champion and his new competitive partner, Barbie Marianne. The two-hour workshop given in a cardio kick-boxing studio devoid of mirrors in the 5 de Diciembre neighborhood consisted of general body mechanics and foot placement fundamentals essential to any kind of dance form. “I thought it was probably the best workshop I have taken, right up there with Giselle Ponce [ a world renowned dancer]. I give it a 10, “said Nina Janik a local resident of Vallarta and ballet instructor who got the salsa dancing bug about two years ago.
The day progressed with a three hour break before the crowd embarked on the ready to party salsa boat as Latin tunes were booming from afar and awakening the senses. People in their twenties to late seventies occupied the boat as they were entertained by games being played progressively through the night many of which involved tequila and rum. Beginners to advanced levels were represented on the water vessel as people laughed, danced and tried to maintain their balance on a rocky boat. Yasmin Servin a local resident who has been dancing for over five years said, “I would do this again because it changes the ambience . It’s different.”
The first-ever salsa boat cruise was organized by Edwin Rodriguez Ovalle of the Latin Brothers Dance Co. here in Puerto Vallarta, Anel Panpoja Alarcon, German Sanchez and Lucho Giraldes of Elite Center in Guadalajara. They began organizing and promoting the event a month ago and all agree that they would do it again. When asked why they decided to organize this event, Lucho Girades commented, “ I liked the idea because it’s original. It was a risk to do in PV because not too many people support these types of projects, but I wanted to collaborate so that I could support the cause wherever I can.”
The original plan was to have the event one and a half years ago but the influenza scare forced the group to postpone their plans according to Alarcon who just starting dancing a little over a year ago. “ I would like to see more workshops and more salsa events. Viva la Salsa.”
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