India Love . . . 3, 2, 1: Hi there, 2014!

A very happy 2014 to you! I had a very busy first day of the year: I'm not sure what gave me the wild hair to do 3 days of dance classes (when I could have done 3 weeks), but I did it. And boy am I happy with the results--everyone at Delhi Dance Academy is very professional and extremely creative. I couldn't have picked a better dance studio if I tried. I had a hard time waking up on New Year's Day. And I sort of had a glittered-out face, but I still went to my class. The first half of it was finishing up Ghoomar, Rajasthani Folk Dancing. Do not judge me by the video above. There are steps that I missed and beats that I am off on, but it was really fun. I absolutely had a blast! I am no professional Ghoomar dancer, people! The second half was Bhangra. Oh my goodness! If someone had told me Bhangra had existed a billion years ago, I would have majored in dance and become a Bhangra master. It's so high energy and fun! And I think a lot of Western hip hop dance stems from Bhangra, which is probably why I love it so much. I spent an hour learning half of a dance. And it was great! Over and over and over again, I practiced. I think this style of dance fits me quite nicely. I have already signed up for 5 more days of classes when I come back in April for Spring Break. I'm so excited! I think I actually squealed when I left class. But more on that later . . . After dinner, the India-based artists and myself had a little birthday celebration for Jinal, who turned a whopping 27 at midnight. I don't know if you people know me or not. But I don't just hang out after midnight for normal people. I'm usually in bed by 10pm. There's something really amazing about being at a residency that creates this sense of freedom and fun, so I did it. I stayed up late for a second night in a row and helped to welcome in a birthday of craziness. There was cake and candles . . . And soon after, icing fights. It was so fun! Campfires and cake: I'm in! Fun times on the first day of the year. Two more days in India: sad-face-clown. I'll be back!