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FOREIGNERS COMING INTO THE SALSA SCENE
Whenever I go out Salsa dancing, I can always spot the foreigners. Every time a big crowd emerges to
watch a couple blasting some amazing moves in the middle, you can always see the hardcore fanatics
next to them, the ones that are about to join in, the usuals that have seen the circles before, and also
next in those lines, with eyes wide open and a face of curiosity and amazement, you get to see
the foreigners in the scene. They are always the ones that are almost not dancing because they
feel like they do not belong, or they feel like they will look bad doing it if they decide to ask
someone to dance. For those people who just got in the scene or just came one time to the clubs, it is
quite hard to get a head start in the Salsa world that we all love.
Now you have to understand, there is three types of foreigners that come to our scene every time we go
out to our spots.
- PASSING BY: These type of foreigners came either by accident, or just to enjoy a nice time
out of their usual ritual. Most of the time these folks already have a pattern in their lives regarding
in what they consider fun. And, most of the time, these type will usually come and we will not see them
ever again, or maybe once in a very long, long time. They are having fun, but Salsa isn't really
how they picture themselves spending their days in.
- LOOKING FOR SOMETHING: These folks are good to impress with our awesome scene because they
don't just admire new and cool things, but are in the look for a new hobby or a new click they could
do in their spare time. These type of people are trying things out and just happened to come to our
scene to see if it is what they have been looking for, and if Salsa is what they have been looking for
they will aproach others, including the ones that look amazing on the floor to find out how they
can get involved or how they can learn to Salsa. They seemed very eager to learn, and are like very
new junkies if in fact Salsa is what they have been looking for.
- SHOCK AND AWE: The third kind is also another keeper. These type of people might not have something
to do on their free time, or if they in fact have already a pattern they are in shock and awe after seeing
the beauty and amazing things you can do with Salsa. They look very surprise when witnessing a great couple
inside the circle, they too want to learn and aproach whoever can get them in the right direction to
experience what they just saw. Some of these people knew that Salsa existed, some of them did not even know
what was it and got to our scene by accident, but the peculiar thing with these people is that these people
get so shocked that they will look for new time to get this new thing into their lives.
SOMEWHAT FOREIGNERS
If you find yourself encoutering a foreigner, they will most likely fall in one of those categories above. But
remember that they can vary in some aspect to what I just described, in fact there are many other types of
people who would be consider foreigners, but do not really fall into one of the three branches that we
described above. Check this out:
THE ADMIRATORS
To start let's talk about one that doesn't really fall directly into any category, we call them
the "admirators", they always seem like they enjoy watching a couple dance, specially
when they see a cool flip being performed - They are not really passing by because you will always see them
in the scene, but also they are not really looking to get into the scene. We can think of them of another category
in itself, but still they kind of fall into the SHOCK AND AWE because of their reaction.
THE VIRGINS
The "virgins" are the people that never danced Salsa but have seen it, they would love to dance the way they
see some of the hardcore Salseros doing it, but don't really take the time to learn or want to invest
that much time into getting in the scene. Once again, they are not really PASSING BY. They somewhat fall
into the LOOKING FOR SOMETHING because they would like to know how to do it, but since they don't want to
take the time to learn it, they don't exactly fit the criteria.
THE LITTLE THUGS
Let's not forget the "little thugs", yeah you heard me. You know, "the cholitos" - They like watching it, but
that's about it. They don't picture themselves doing it, nor they would want to I guess, maybe, somewhat? I don't
really know much about this kind, I guess it doesn't really matter since they do not want to get in the
scene and live their lives.
THE SUITS
Another type that do not get exactly classified in the main criterias are "the suits" - They look like they are
Salseros by the way they dressed and move. They are most of the time doing business or somewhat planning
stuff. These people are in the scene but most of them don't really get down on the dance floor like the rest, I
guess you can think of them as the organizers of events. Although not all of them do events, they just look
like they are.
THE ROCKEROS
These folks are just as crazy as the Salseros, the only difference is that they don't really like Salsa as
much or at all like we do. They don't dance that much, and their passion is in guitars and drum sets. They are
the ones that shake their head so hard up and down until it is all messy and they get to jump around
screaming out the songs instead of singing them. Cool people to know and check out in the scene, just not
Salseros.
THE RANCHEROS
Quebradita or Banda anyone? Yeah, you know what I am talking about, "the rancheros" are the ones that love
Tejano-Mexican music. You will not get to see them too much in our scene, because they have their own scene
and clubs. But they will come to explore our parts once in a while. You will recognize them because they are
the Latin Cowboys in the place. Check out the boots and buckles! cool eh?
THE HOPPERS
Yeah, these folks grew up listening to Hip Hop, Rap and R&B. These type of people can really relate to Salseros
because they see that Salsa is somewhat of a rebel dance in the Latin rhythms. A lof of these guys in fact
can cross over once they discover the cool things you can do with Salsa more than the other types.
THE MYTH
A big debate always happens when someone from other types of background starts to like the Salsa scene. Their mind
asks them if they in fact have to leave something behind if they will take a new love instead. Is it necessary
to replace something for other?
Usually the question arises when they see that the Salsa bug is hitting them hard. Sometimes people get it so
fast and hard that they stop doing anything else and are just Salsa dancing left and right. It is only fair to
ask the question because people have seen it again and again. In fact, there is no direct response if you have
to leave something behind, or replace something with your new Salsa addiction, it could happen in so many ways
that you never know what could happen to this person, or that person and so on. Get the point?
The important thing I guess is that no matter how huge of a Salsa Fanatic you become, you can always admire
all types of hobbies, dancing and music. You can always do whatever you can and did before you became
a hardcore Salsero even though sometimes you just can't get enough of it... the choice is really personal
here. But let's be realistic here, once you hit the stage where you are dancing every weekend, and
are listening to Salsa day and night, it is really less likely than you are STILL a foreigner!
How can we help the foreigners who are trying to get into the scene, since we are already in it? Open your
mind and teach them a thing or two to help them ease the pain of looking funny on the dance floor. You can
always inform them where they can go to take some Salsa classes if you know of a good place, even better, you
can introduce them to some of your hardcore Salsa friends who will help them and get them in the right
direction. Instructors are always a good start, you can show them who are the instructors and introduce them
to them.
If you are in fact a foreigner, the best way to get started is to start taking classes. Trust me, this is something
that will help you tremendously. Book privates for fast advancement - I know that you probably don't know
who is the best instructor for you, but it doesn't hurt to try a bit of all of them to decide later on. Another
good thing is to start going out and dancing as much as possible, I know that it is hard and very intimidating,
but remember - Practice makes Better!
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