Baila Que Baila (Whoever Can Dance, Dance) Albuquerque Style

5:00 a.m.
Well, if I’d known I’d get to go dancing on this trip, I would have packed some different shoes.
I’m starting this on Sunday morning, but the whole post is really about Saturday. I have a bus to catch in about 2 hours, and since I’m already awake….
Well, my Saturday went well. Two good things happened today. First, I got to ride the New Mexico RailRunner, and second I got to hear a live Latin band and go dancing with a friend of mine. I’m going to be wiped out tomorrow, but why worry about that?
My friend and I agreed yesterday that we would go out tonight, since there is a live band at a local club called The Cooperage on Saturday nights. It’s also a local weekend hangout for whatever passes for the “Cuban community” out here. So my plan for the day was to ride the RailRunner to Santa Fe at 9:30 a.m. so that I could be back by about 2 p.m. Then I would have lots of time to shop for a dancing outfit; I really didn’t have anything suitable. I also planned to get a good amount of my packing done before we went anywhere, so I could snooze once I got back this morning.
You know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and [wo]men……. I didn’t even get out of bed until after 9 a.m. this morning. Then I needed to wash my hair. So I caught the 11:30 train instead. What a great experience!
Everywhere I’ve gone so far on this trip I’ve met wonderfully comforting crowds on trains, and this was no exception. Even the train attendants were commenting on how unusually full the train was. I think quite a few of the passengers were first time riders like me, and some were tourists like me, too.
However, other first-timers were obviously New Mexican residents. There seems to be quite a lot of interest in the whole Rail Runner concept here, and people seem quite knowledgeable about the train, the route and future plans. There was talk of WiFi to be implemented shortly on all trains, and one man was talking about the train eventually running from Santa Fe to El Paso, TX!
The scenery was pretty fantastic the whole way, and the trains themselves were both fast and comfy. The ride south to Belen wasn’t as crowded, and I had a whole car to myself on the afternoon ride back to Albuquerque. This gave me the opportunity to talk with the conductor and two attendants, who were almost as fascinating as the ride itself. Whenever I get back to Albuquerque again, I’m going to make a point of going up to Santa Fe this way.
I got back to ABQ after 4:30, and I was supposed to be ready to go after 9:00 p.m. And I had NO dress! I tossed a coin, and two bus rides later ended up at a local Ross Dress-For-Less. Now u ladies out there who are familiar with this store know that it can be BIG hit, or BIG miss in Ross, depending on what u want to buy and even sometimes what time of day u go in there. Well, I got lucky, in that I found three possible things to wear. I bought them all (well, at Ross that was actually financially possible LOL) figuring I’d make a final decision – later.
Now it was out to wait for another two buses and hope that I would get back to the hotel with enough time to titivate. I am fortunate in having a friend who has a good grasp of time – and who knows well enough that I’m not likely to be ready EARLY…..LOL) So by the time he got there, I was mostly ready, and we were able to arrive at the club by 10 p.m.
I admit I enjoyed myself immensely. This despite the fact that the band was….barely adequate, and the waitress quite inadequate. Of course this is much more possible in the company of good friend[s], and I was very fortunate to be in good company. But I really haven’t been dancing for a while, either, so there was a pleasure in that as well. I’m usually not that much of a “people watcher”, but it was pretty cool watching all the different styles – and ability levels – of dancers out there on the floor.
Unfortunately my dancing wasn’t as cool. Ladies, let me remind u of the importance of shoes that FIT PROPERLY when u go out for a night of serious hoofing it. My little strappy heels looked great, but were awful for doing anything more than the most rudimentary turns. My good friend knows much more than the rudimentary salsa moves, and he executes with style and grace. I, on the other hand, felt more like a heifer on stilts – wobbly ones. Also I’m a lot more out of practice, and frankly out of shape, too, than I was the last time we danced together, which was, admittedly, a couple of years ago.
Even so, I managed not to step on anybody, and we actually did cut at least part of a rug tonight. I was actually quite disappointed when the club rolled up its welcome and turfed out the customers before 2 a.m. Do u think somebody told them I’m supposed to be catching a bus this morning and they put everybody else out so I wouldn’t be obvious in leaving?
Anyway, my friend dropped me off sometime between 2 and 3 a.m., and I’ve been up packing since then. (Well, I admit to a nap around 4 a.m.) Now I have to go get ready so I don’t miss my bus, and therefore all my trains for the next four days…..
[NOTE: I filled in a lot of the details on this post MUCH later than the 5 a.m. original post time….]