We sing. We dance. We break things.

Last weekend I went out with my Spanish teacher Carlos (I adore him), his girlfriend Cinthia (I adore her) and his friend whose name is also Carlos (ehhh...). But seriously, fabulous fabulous times. We started out at a fancy karaoke bar that had a bona fied suit-wearing bouncer out front and a bathroom in the back. Get this... the bathroom even had (drum roll please) it´s own supply of toilet paper (GASP!) and hand soap (DOUBLE GASP!). What more could I ask for? Sangria! But they had that too. No more choking down Cusqueña cervesa (the gold of the Incas... bleh!) for me. Beauty!

Above is a photo of my Perú friends, Cinthia and Carlos. Next to me is the other Carlos. He seriously put his head on my shoulder when we took the picture like he was my bloody pet dog or something. I mean seriously, a little space please! I tried climbing up the wall to escape him but had no luck. He spent the rest of the night pretending like he was my blanket. Luckily pitcher after pitcher after pitcher of sangria calmed my anger.



First up singing a little karaoke: Carlos looking somewhat apprehensive (but adorable) singing some Spanish song I can´t remember...


Then it was my turn... Before we left the house, Carlos asked me if I would sing in Spanish. ¨Carlos, give me a couple drinks and I´ll sing in Russian if you´d like!¨ Yikes! Little did I know how hard it would be. I ended up loosing my place in the first verse. It was horrible (meaning I was horrible). I was only able to shout out the lyric, ¨Damelo!¨ [Give it to me!] once after what felt like a half an hour of silence... I mean seriously horrendous. Note to self: drink much much more sangria before attempting to sing in Spanish... and learn how to point microphone towards mouth.

Singing Madonna´s, ¨Like a Virgin¨ with Cinthia. Hilarious! Thank goodness 80´s pop is so popular down here. You just can´t go wrong with it...


...and our grand finally: singing Destiny´s Child´s ¨Jumpin´ Jumpin´.¨ How awesome is it that Carlos knows that song!?!

After karaoke we went to a discoteque called Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal is pretty much just like any dance club back home just with the addition of seizure inducing strobe lights and the overuse of fog machines. One other thing... it was saturated with the smoke of a thousand cigarettes, a characteristic I have happily forgotten since the 2008 smoke ban in Illinois. Anyway, it was definitely another upscale place and it even had a dress code posted outside. Yay Taj Mahal!


... And so I attempted salsa again and this time I felt a little more coordinated. I mean, look at me, I even managed to dance and wink at the same time. I´m still working on dancing, winking, and smiling... some things just take time to learn.

Above is a photo of my ever annoying blanket, me, Cinthia and Javier (a friend of Cinthia´s). Javier was bastante barracho and super fun to dance with. He spent most of the night throwing me around the dance floor while I just tried to cling to his jacket and not fall down. Basically I was like a big gringa bumper car knocking down the little Peruvians around me. Love it!


... Cinthia and Carlos. This was probably taken at 4am after a lot of dancing and a lot of cervesa.

Yep, lots of cervesa... How did I not feel Cinthia´s tuff of hair all up in my face!?!

... this one is somewhat better although I think it was taken earlier in the night.

Anyway, I made it out until 5:30am, in bed at 6am (At last South America is seeping into my blood!!!). We finally left after a fight broke out, a glass was thrown, a girl fell down way drunk hurting herself and a kid was forcibly escorted out of the bar by four bouncers... just like being in Chicago. Anyway, above is suppose to be a video of the beautiful people of Latin America dancing but you can´t really see them so enjoy the music. Other songs I remember hearing that night:

Andy Montañez feat. Daddy Yankee - Se le ve - Love this song!

Pittbull - Calle Ocho - Sweet! This song´s been popular in the U.S. since sometime this past winter. I finally understand what is being said in Spanish and it is somewhat ridiculous... you´ve gotta google it. Anyway, now the lyrics are forever stuck in my head. Luckily I amuse my co-workers whenever I sing it... we´ll see how long that lasts.

Michael Jackson - Billie Jean - Was Michael Jackson always this popular down here? I showed off my stellar moon walking moves with this song. Oh yeah, I dazzled.

Black Eyed Peas - I´ve Gotta Feeling - This song was just coming out in Chicago when I left so I was super excited when they played it. I started jumping up in down (heather-mosh-pit style) when it came on, which is sooo not Latin dancing but surprisingly the Peruanos around me followed my lead. It was a beautiful moment... the union of cultures and countries, really.

Tito El Bambino - El Amor - Definitely the song of the moment.

The Ketchup Song - I have no clue who sings this but it was THE song when I was in France, second only to the Monoprix grocery store tune. Anyway, I couldn´t believe it when the discoteque played a snip-it from it. Fabulous.... it was like meeting an old friend.

Daddy Yankee - Rompe

Daddy Yankee - El Ritmo No Perdona 'Prende'

Daddy Yankee - Que Tengo Que Hacer - I just realized that when I look back on my life in South American my memories are going to be accompanied by a Daddy Yankee soundtrack. Oh boy...

Anyway, I´m almost at the half way point of my stay in South America and to celebrate I´m heading up to Bogotá, Colombia next Friday September 25 for an extended weekend getaway. If you don´t hear from me next weekend please contact my friends, Tim and Jung in Chicago. They promised me before I left that they´d come look for me if I were stolen away by guerrillas. But no worries... it´s super safe. So until next weekend, besos!