California just can't Belly Dance!!

Still in Palo Alto,  still loving the yoga, still loving the fresh air, still loving it.

Today was my first time to take a class at the famous equinox local gym. A yoga class, AGAIN IT WAS AMAZING, class was packed, and my wonderful husband decided to come too, which i am thrilled to experience. Yoga is not just bodily routines it is creating a connection with the divine, and that is my favorite part. the effect of bliss and relaxation after the class is what i always look forward to. After the yoga class i decided to stretch my limit and take the class after as my husband does his cardio, and i wish i had not experienced what i did.

the class is called nia and it is nothing like i expected. first as an egyptian i was very happy to listen to the arabian music which the instructor used, the sound of the oud in such unfamiliar territory was like a breath of fresh air. I got so excited until the instructor started destroying the idea of belly dance. Being a belly dancer my self i was so upset to c my dance destroyed and mimicked in the worst possible way. With californian stiffness and a lack of eastern sway she moved her hips to the left and to the right and the stiffest most depressing way. i tried to go along with her dance i tried to copy as the rest of the happy class did, but all i could think of was how sorry i was that these people who are copying the instructor are being fooled. As Dalida's song played and as the instructor moved in confidence destroying the essence of the belly dance and broadcasting it as the right one for one more time, I found my self heading to the door. i could not hold my self back from dancing the right way and i did not want to disrespect the teacher, and if i copied her with her stiff hip movement i could have not survived it.  Another day at the peaceful palo alto, starting to miss the  san francisco vibe. Palo Alto is so beautiful and very quiet, you could hear your brain think louder than the sound of the street and sometimes you could hear your heart beat.

My favorite part about it is still the yoga factor.

tousa