The Ballroom Blitz

This video is so bizarre. It is from the 70's. Maybe they smoked a little too much something before performing. Very possible.

So some would think living in Sao Paulo, Brazil you would get barraged only with Latin culture. This is not true. Like any metropolis, there are many different cultures and ethnicities residing here. Well last week we got to experience a Scottish Ceili. Talk about fun times! Yes, even in South America you have Scots. And bagpipes. Since I am a big fan of many things Scottish: me good friend Katie to take the number one slot, me other good friend Virginia the gambling seamstress - joke in there Virginia I will explain later, Scotch Whiskey - aged Single Malt Highland of course, shortbread, and Gerard Butler - but only when he is not chewing. He chews like he lives in a frat house. Yuck. Just to name five or this blog would never end. So when a friend explained about the St. Andrews Society Ball I just had to go. Alas, there was no Gerard Butler though.

We went with several friends to this PAR-TAY. I know we weren't the token Americans, but it was close. There was a procession in, many men in kilts (hopefully with underthings, but most likely not as they were true Scots), with bagpipe accompaniment. Then the dancing began. Talk about a big ol' mess. Half the peeps knew what they were doing, mainly the Scots, the rest of us were all over the place. A true ballroom blitz. We were given direction but if you don't know what a promenade is, or any of the other move names, you are not going to do it correctly. Plus you have to change partners multiple times. Yeah, we lost people who didn't want to dance with ignoramuses like ourselves. But we still had bunches of fun.

One of the great parts of the night was all you can drink whiskey. There was a bottle of Chivas Regal on the table in case you were too lazy to get up and go to the bar. Yes, that was me. Now my husband was fine. As a Hispanic, rum is his poison. But moi? Irish or Scotch Whiskey is for me. So much so that I started drinking it when we walked in and finished when we walked out. Forget about drinking water or eating bread to soak up some alcohol, that did not happen. I had me a two fingers full glass of neat Chivas all night. Never got below a finger's worth. So by the time we left, 12:30 because Ricardo was playing golf (invented by the Scots so it was okay to leave early) at 6 am, I was not walking perfectly straight. Now, let me tell you what I was wearing. I had on 3 inch heels that matched a very lovely raspberry colored gown that draped the floor so I tripped a bit if I was not careful. Some said it was pink/hot pink. But since I do not wear pink, it was raspberry sherbert in color. I think I can actually blame the dress instead of the whiskey. So we get into an Uber to go home, just across the river. Easy Peasy. Or should I say easy queasy?

Since it was cold by Brazilian standards (around 16 C/58 F) the windows were up and the A/C was not on. We did ask for A/C and we got a pittance of air. It did not help. Luckily we had to go only a 10 minute ride. Then I made the mistake of closing my eyes. Bad move Jen! We got to our condo complex. There were 4 cars in line for the visitor entrance. Since we were in an Uber we could not go through the resident line. I had to get out. There was no way I could take the car any more. I did not want to ruin my dress or the floorboards. It is a 10 minute hike up a steep, steep hill or a 5 minute wait. I chose the hike. Ricardo thought I was nuts. Well, he still thinks I am nuts, but that is not a new thing. So here we are, Rico in a suit, me in a gown entering the pedestrian entrance. Ricardo thinks the guards took pictures. Point one, we were fancified; point 2, me not walking straight; point 3, I kept on dropping my purse. But amazingly enough a steep hill is easier to walk in heels even if you are zigzagging it.

We made it home, Ricardo made it to golf. And we are ready for next year. I will be better prepared though. A shorter dress and some water in between. Can't wait!