Donde es El Rey de Los Pantalones

Not only where, but indeed is there a King of trousers. Phil and I were doubting the existence having walked along Corrientes (the train had broken down) which is a major artery of the city and the traffic pumps out carbon monoxide and diesel particles. We reached Pueyerrdon (try saying this when every letter must be pronounced and the double r, rolled....try again, faster...) and could not find the shop despite asking all and sundry. So difficult was it, we wondered that many did not appear at milongas in ropa interior only!
We gave up knowing we would have to report a shopping failure and went into the Carlos Gardel museum. Lots of memorabilia, photos, old records, extracts from his films and of course he was singing in the background. Not inspirational though and the museum is the house he lived in, which is now a run down area. However just one block away it brightened up and there were a couple of tango shops. Someone was leaving one shop, the door being held open by a vision of loveliness. We went in before there was a chance of being locked out. While we were searching for the Spanish for "when do you get off work, luv?" We asked about the trouser shop. She said some appealing things to us in Spanish and when she could not work out the gormless expression on our faces, went to the computer and googled the address. So kind as it was a woman's fashion shop and we did not look like we intended to buy a dress or high heeled shoes. Now high in spirits, for a variety of reasons, we found the shop.
As soon as we entered and said the magic word tango, our hands were shaken...we had found the King. He did not speak English but communication was complete. One look at my waist, no embarrassing comments about approaching 1m, but I was presented with a pair of trousers the exact size! The style feature is two pleats from the waistband each side for tango salon, four for milonguero. The girls reported men who used both styles but I have not noticed anybody slipping out to change trousers mid-tanda!
So dutifully armed (legged?) with our pantalones, we can claim another point towards Porteno status. We have previously gathered points for steak and empanadas eating.

Tango Styles

Only over the last few months after workshops with Homer and Christina and Horacio Godoy, have I begun to realise what these different styles are like.
Tango Salon is what we dance in England and it is the most prevalent style in BsAs. Close embrace (don't even think about open embrace unless you are going to do fancy steps and do let me know where you will find the space here) which leaves an open side.
In milonguero style the embrace is a very tight hold with bodies parallel. Normally my right arm just touches the back of the woman and indicates the space in which she can pivot. There is no pivot in milonguero style hence the woman is held tightly but not pulled into the man. One follower I danced with asked me to hold her more tightly. This has not happened to me for many, many years and when it last happened I did not have any clothes on! So all the movement from the woman is with the legs which are sent all over the place by the experienced (inevitably old, as the style is dying out) leader and to a very limited extent by me. It is obvious the woman wants milonguero style when you try an ocho and it does not work because she does not pivot.
It has taken 3 visits for the penny to drop!

Cabaceo by proxy

I am learning all the time about the cabaceo (for the normal reader, rather than the tango obsessive, this is the invitation to dance with the eyes)
In England, when this is possible it has been for me a gentle system. I look and catch the gaze of a follower, slowly we appreciate that there is an invitation, there is a hopeful nod from me and a response and we both sigh with relief that it has worked, stand up and dance.
The dynamics are different here. Often the follower initiates with a gaze like a beam of ultra-violet radiation. To fail to heed this will cause skin damage. To deliberately ignore .....well, I cannot say as I have not dared! The mere fact that there is no direct line of sight is not an obstacle. The woman may lean out of her seat with the upper half of her body horizontal as her penetrative gaze has me leaping to my feet. Indeed if there is another person alongside, who is in the line of sight, then he is cabaceo'd and with shakes of the head the message transferred to me - cabaceo by proxy!

Did we do enough for Regina?

Regina's visit to Argentina lasted only 8 days. Her adventures included the following but could we have done more?
2 internal flights
A boat trip or see whales
Much driving on dirt roads (Regina) and paved roads (Bob) to see penguins and whales from the cliffs
2 trips to Comme il Faut, trips to Greta Flora, Neo Tango, Darcos
X pairs of shoes purchased (I have signed the official secrets act so X cannot be disclosed) - but just watch her feet
3 steak dinners in the incomparable Don Julio's Parilla
Lunch at Cafe Tortoni with statues of Carlos Gardel watching over us
7 milongas in the 4 days in BsAs
Hundreda of wonderful dances with portenos ( the old ones were the best!) who cherished her in the tango embrace
Being welcomed (as we all were) into the milongas and being hugged and kissed when we left and implored to return
I rest my case!
Me gusta Argentina!

Tales of Whales

Regina, Rosanna and I flew into Buenos Aires and out again 10 hours later, destination Trelew. The next morning we picked up a car and drove to Puerto Pyramides, the centre for whale watching. We went straight to our hotel, The Paradise, and an hour later we were putting on flotation vests for our trip. The Gulf Nuevo has a narrow inlet and provides a sheltered sea location for the Southern Right Whale to breed and give birth.
I committed to this trip with some doubts as I am a terrible sailor, but the rewards exceeded doubts. The boat was about the size of a whale and could easily cope with the weather today, beautiful blue sky and little wind. We were soon sighting whales and one came right alongside, hence I knew the boat was no bigger than the whale. It swam under the boat and I was glad it did not surface just then! Several lept out of the water and provided great movie shots. But we were lacking the classic tail out of the water.
We thought this had been the almost perfect trip and then, in quick succession, three whales arched their tails up into the sky and the trip had become perfect!
Later that day and the next we explored the coast line and were distracted by a wonderful colony of Magellan penguins, sunning themselves and completely relaxed with us just a few feet away. From the cliff tops we could see several whales and we were continually shouting to one another "there's one". Somehow it seemed more respectful to see these amazing creatures from a distance and in context. However to be close was an unforgettable experience.
For two days we did not think of tango!

The Guggenheim Museum

The building is a sculpture in its own right. It is wonderful to walk around inside and outside. The enormous spider and the puppy made of growing flowers are remarkable. There is a permanent exhibit of  concrete walls, some in a spiral, some a pair in a wavy line. Some converge others diverge. They are remarkable in setting a mood just by being in their presence.
Most of the other exhibits are the sort that you find in Tate Modern, Nottingham Contemporary or The Baltic in Newcastle, but I feel so elated thinking about the Guggenheim that I cannot bring myself to rant!

On being a Godoy groupie

The first part of my week in Bilbao was spent at Bego's mother's house. I enjoyed wonderful hospitality and meals and the chance to meet Bego's brother, sister-in-law and their daughter Avril. It was lovely to spend time with all of them.
Once the Basque Country Tango Festival began I moved into the hotel to share with Lorenzo. We (Bego, Lorenzo, Regina (part of the time) and I did 7 workshops with Horacio and his delightful parner Magdalena Guttierez. They are a great teaching pair. He had videos, and was inspirational in his knowledge of the dance and the music. We learnt some nice steps but everything was approached with musicality to the fore. All the couples teaching gave excellent demonstration dances showing control over technique. However Horacio and Magdalena were supreme in their musical interpretation. It was like another instrument added to the orchestra.
A great week of sun while sightseeing and rain during the tango festival!

On jumping in the sea

Another stop on our tour of places to visit and bars was the old port. It is a place to sit and drink and to watch young lads jumping into the sea. I did not join them!

On nearly being famous in Bilbao

One of the attractions in Bilbao is the Vizcaya Bridge, a World Heritage site.  It was opened in 1893, refurbished in 2011 and transports a gondola from one side of the river to the other.

Of course it looks fun to go up one of the towers.

From here we have good views and can look down on the gondola and admire the bridge construction.
When we had had enough, the kind operator of the lift took us down. The door only opened half way but Sue decided the door should be pushed open. This it did but then decided to close fully, trapping 4 of us inside! When the Bilbao Evening Post hears about this, we thought, then we will have our photos distributed widely and frequently as our bodies become increasingly emaciated. But instead of the media, the engineers were called and we were released and our sole hope of fame was dashed.
A couple of glasses of Txakoli (the local white wine, only available in the Basque Country)
sustained us on our journey before we reached Bego's favourite bar, for the best mojitos ever!

On being a beach bum in Bilbao (September 2013)

This is very easy although I only did it for a day!
The beaches are absoluely magnificent.   Numerous bays, all with glorious fine sand, along a rocky coast line.  The swimming conditions vary with some tricky currents apparently but I never go in the sea above my ankles!  Various degrees of undress are acceptable in the different bays, or so I am told!