Taste of Freedom at Walzerlinksgestrickt

13.July 2014

Tangotourist in Berlin, Summer 2014

Tonight we went to Milonga Ballhaus Walzerlinksgestrickt. A formal room with gold columns and red velvet. At first it seemed a bit stiff and I felt my skirt was too short. But it turned out to be a very free atmosphere. The lights were low. The level was mixed, and it was not an intimidating dance floor for beginners. Moreover, there wasn’t any scowling or attitude.

Now that I am home at 4:30am and it is getting light, and I have eaten two punnets of blueberries, I have a profound realization which is that I experienced for the first time with Aurélie the kind of revelling I talk about all the time, which is the way that the revel can set the mark free.Because she takes care of her body, I am free to be much more musical, much better at managing traffic, and explore combinations I haven’t used before.

It’s an experience I’ve imagined and hoped for, but not experienced until tonight.

Here she is, dancing with Armin.

Silences in history. Silences by code. Silences of fear. You already know that Tango’s silences can be sublime and they can be devastating.

What I do in my blog is use myself as a lens – sometimes a microscope, sometimes a telescope. I try to be as honest with myself and you as words concede. Then I try to find a deeper meaning and imagine a pathway for us.

A blog post can be a fragment, a wisp of inspiration, an outline for thinking. A book must complete and reconcile it all. Now I drag the social scientist to the scene to enumerate the facts of the case, the mystery which brought both stardom and tragedy to my life.