A Carnival of Cities is going on in the world of bloggers, and this month the host is Alan Patrick of Buenos Aires Travel. Bloggers who wish to participate write an article about a city, any city. I could write about tango in many cities around the world where I've danced (like Paris, Amsterdam, Madrid, even Havana) and I write all the time about Buenos Aires, so now here is my contribution to the Bloggers' Carnival: Surprise, it's Denver!




TANGO MAGIC IN DENVER, COLORADO, SEPTEMBER 1999

From afar, the white pavilion glows rose in the sunset.
The surrounding flowers and fountains frame
the quadrangle of Grecian columns and steps. It might be on an island in the Mediterranean but for the luscious green grass, the tall skyscrapers lit up behind the trees, and the reigning, distant Rocky Mountains.

Upon closer inspection, there's movement on the marble floor, couples in deep embrace responding to music. Rollerblading teenagers are perched on the stairs, strolling familes sit on benches to watch. On one side, there's an artist with an easel attempting to capture the magic.

I'm there, too, dancing with a stranger, and it feels like I'm in a movie. All of the many couples on the floor are framed between tall columns
against a golden red background of sky and clouds.

The perfume of barbeque smoke and other potluck food under
white tents feeds my totally turned on senses. I am in the
moment, and I am completely happy as the sky turns black
and a quarter moon rises over the "Tango Temple" in Cheseman Park.

Am I dreaming? No, it's just the finale of the Denver
Triple Milonga Weekend, where I and many other visiting
dancers had the time of our lives. Through cooperation and
hard work, the local Denver tango community organized a
great weekend of live music, milongas, classes, parties, casual
lodgings of visiters, and fun for themselves and visitors from
all over the country.


The above describes the first of the many long tango weekends in Denver that now several years later have become traditional in May and September. I returned three times before I moved to Mexico in December 2001, and then to Argentina in 2003. These Denver weekends were the best tango experiences I ever had in the United States.