This blog should have been due months ago and finally, I have the motivation to write this. I could easily just forget this chapter and make this a distant memory but I promised myself that I will document my dance journey here on Hive so let's get to it.
BORACAY LATIN DANCE VACATION was held last November 25-27, 2022 at Boracay Island, Philippines! A mini dance festival that offered workshops and performances by local artists here in the Philippines, and social dancing every night. I just recently learned that the organizers already had big events in the past few years and this was but just a warm-up after the pandemic hit. Nonetheless, it was a very successful event and was graced by amazing Afro-Latin Dance enthusiasts around the world.
WORKSHOPS
The workshops included Bachata, Kizomba, Salsa, and Zouk dance classes taught by experienced teachers and professionals. It was held at Luna Hall at Coast Hotel in Station 2. I love the small space and that it was already enough to hold about 25 - 30 participants. One can choose which classes to attend.
The classes started at 2:00 pm and usually take about an hour each. I was able to attend all classes on Day 1 and missed the last one on Day 2 because I was already tired by that time. My dance teacher said that the exhaustion I had during the 2nd day was nothing compared to the time I will be attending international festivals where workshops would take 3 whole days!
I liked the Beginner's Salsa On 2 workshop taught by Ana Palma. She was able to explain and show the dance steps in a very simple and clear manner. I mentioned before that I always get scared dancing Salsa because I never got to learn it properly and find it too technical. But after that workshop, I was able to confidently dance this style even just doing the basics of it!
I also loved the Zouk classes taught by Rohit which focused on body isolations and musicality and the partner works taught by Teachers Jem & Ianne. And for a limited time, they already shared rich knowledge about the fundamentals of this beautiful dance style.
My dance teacher Mich was also invited at the very last minute to teach Bachata Ladies Styling to all women attendees although one of the boys joined too! It was a fun class.
SOCIAL DANCING
Unfortunately, I was no longer growing as a dancer in my hometown as there are only limited male leads and so being able to dance with amazing dancers from other places and countries with an advanced level of leading during the social dancing parties of this event opened a lot of opportunities for me to evolve!
There were 3 nights of social dancing and I made the most out of them. At first, I would shy away but my dance teacher encouraged me to be the first to ask the male dancers to dance with me so I could learn or else it would be a wasted opportunity! She was damn right! Despite there were times, I would make mistakes or never quite get the steps, I still enjoyed dancing and this made me inspired to attend other social dancing events in other places in the future.
Will post videos soon!
PERFORMANCE NIGHTS
On the second day of social dancing that was held at Paradise Garden Resort Hotel & Convention Center, some of the teachers and dancers made a special performance to showcase their talent or dance specialty for all attendees of the event. It was a 10-15 minute nonstop dance show which left the audience amazed and inspired. I will share a video here soon.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
I had hesitations coming to this event because of financial reasons but because my dance coach wanted someone to go with her, I said yes. Attending such events cost a lot. I managed to record all my expenses using Splitwise! @ybanezkim26 shared this amazing app last year and has been very useful to me ever since because I'm a freak when it comes to listing down all my expenses during my travels! 😆
Anyways, so here is a breakdown of my Boracay Latin Dance Vacation expense to give you an idea of how much you should prepare just in case you would like to attend one too in the future:
| Category | Amount (PHP) | Amount ($) |
|---|---|---|
| Plane Ticket | 3200 | 58.18 |
| Event Pass Workshops - 2 days | 2500 | 45.45 |
| Event Pass Social Dancing - 2 days | 1500 | 27.27 |
| Hotel/Resort | - | - |
| Transportation + Fees | 1015 | 18.45 |
| Food + Drinks | 3510 | 63.18 |
| Others | 1240 | 22.54 |
| Total | 12,965 | 235.07 |
My dance teacher paid for both our hotel stay which costs Php 5700 or $103 good for 3 nights so I was able to save up Php 2,850 or $51.51. Plane tickets should be purchased months before the event date to get discounts as with the event passes. Transportation already includes the boat ride going to the island and other fees like environmental fees. I was able to save up for the food and drinks since the hotel we were staying at had free breakfast. I spent more on liquor during the parties and social dancing.
Rounding it off, my total expense was Php 13,000 or $236. I think this was already cheaper than I have anticipated for a 4D3N stay in Boracay Island. And it was all worth it!
It was my first time attending an Afro-Latin dance event outside of my hometown and having it at Boracay island made it all the more memorable and epic! Stay tuned for the videos! 💃😍
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You are indeed a a Talented strong woman, having fun while in a stunning place such us Boracay is a dream.
Thank you @intoy.bugoy! Now that you mentioned "strong", I realized my knee injury wasn't still 100% ok but I still manage to dance 3 days and 3 nights. 😂 I guess I was strong to defy all the odds.
I can say that you really had a great time in Boracay inday. It not the cost that it counts, its the memories and the experience that it's all worth it. Great journey inday!
True that! When I look back, I realized that I made meaningful connections, amazing memories with new friends, and a short but fruitful journey despite the money I've used.
Indeed😊
Wao, this is so great. Hope I am permitted to join your dance next time?
Sure do! Someday! 😉
Alright then, I sure will be expecting
Wow. A unique way to experience Boracay. I'm always amazed whenever I watch dancers get "in the zone". It's like your bodies are telling a story. Just amazing.
"In the Zone" - and/or "In the Flow" when we are finally in the dance floor! When dancing, dancers are in the NOW moment which is actually freeing in many ways. And stories come up from the dance movements that are shown. Dancing is an art!
You are such a multi-talented independent woman.
Wow this is beautiful. I see it seems you have a great passion for dance and i love that. I could still remember sometime last year when you talked about yoga classes and now is the zouk dance class and I'm sure i have missed a lot more before now. It is really beautiful and i love your passion towards dances. 😊❤️
Wow! I haven't gone to a distant place for a workshop. I see that you did enjoy your time.
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