Chinese folk dancing # 2 / Yoga # 35

[supercheesegirl]

Public service announcement: Chinese folk dancing is really difficult. It's definitely the accessories. I've seen at least two women in my class who I know can move get flummoxed by this (besides the two older women who tend to catch on slower--they're, well, catching on slower). I've still having issues with one particular set of movements--whirling the fan and the handkerchief at the same time, which involves bending the wrists and whipping the objects around quickly and accurately. I sit at a computer all day, my wrists do not want to do this. Otherwise, I'm not doing too badly--I'm managing to keep track of the actual steps to our dance better than many of the others in the class, and a few times I was able to provide Lanwei with vocabulary when she was grasping for a word. I'm not too bad at the steps and movements, but then coordinating the fan with all of it is difficult. I have to say I really admire Lanwei--she's such a talented dancer, and she's walked into this class and is trying to teach us with limited English abilities, and it's got to be hard for her. One problem is that there are some things she only knows one way to say, so she just keeps repeating that one thing ("No, move you fan. You fan, move you fan."). She's obviously a smart woman and an accomplished dancer, so it must be frustrating for her. She emailed us an mp3 of our song, though, so we can practice at home. I'll try!


Yoga # 35
Friday April 16, early morning
25 minutes
1090 minutes total

A bit of yoga this morning, mostly floor stuff. I made sure to do some wrist stretches, and my hips were tight too.