Honey, we're home!

Now, back in Brisbane and so excited to be returning to classes this week the Vida Latina performance troupe are ready to have fun with their wonderful Zumba and Latin Dance students once again!

After two weeks away (read all about it in previous blog posts) each of the wonderful dancers have had the most amazing experience touring and performing in Japan! Wowing audiences with Latin Cabaret in Kyoto, Fukui, Tokyo and the full stage production Sakura in Hiroshima, plus countless workshops kept this beautiful team busy as they completed this fantastic JAPAN 2010 Tour. The audiences absolutely loved the Aussie troupe and want them back again to perform and showcase their spectacular productions in the future.

Making history, this Brisbane-based dance company is now recognised for self-funding and supporting 9 dancers to travel, tour and perform internationally giving the Vida Latina Dance Company directors an incredible sense of success. In only 5 years this company has grown and continues to wow with inavative, incredible and inspiration productions showcasing each of their performers talents and giving opportunities unlike any other dance company in Brisbane.

To celebrate returning to 'the land of Oz' Vida Latina are hosting a STUDIO PARTY. Everyone is welcome (even if you don't feel like dancing) come along and chat with the dancers and enjoy a lovely night out:

Where: Vida Latina Studio, 25 Railway Tce, Milton
When: Friday evening 30th July
Time: 8pm - late (join us for coffee at Park Rd after the dancing!)
Entry: $7
Call 0415 587 316 if you have any questions about the party.

Now back in full swing Vida Latina Dance Company will be providing more amazing Zumba Fitness classes around Brisbane (check www.zumbafitnessbrisbane.com) plus more fun and more parties, shows and entertainment coming your way.

The Vida Latina Blog will continue... so you will be able to read more about the adventures of Vida Latina and all the wonderful events coming your way!

Have a beautiful week ahead and if you would like any information about Vida Latina please call 0415 587 316 or email info@vidalatina.com.au

(Special thanks to Mieke Jonker for the uploading skills she provides to keep the VL Blog running!)

Here are some photos from our performances in Japan.

Vida Latina's last few days in Japan (Monday 12.07.2010 & Tuesday 13.07.2010)

The last few days has been relaxing with a lot of walking and heaps of shopping in Osaka. The mall here stretches for eons and that is just the main street. Then there is an underground mall as well as separate sections which come off from the main one. It's incredible! So much variety so much fun!

Unfortunately the rainy weather here in Osaka is keeping us from doing a great deal of sight seeing so instead we are spending time together and getting ready to jet set home again to Oz tomorrow. We fly out late Wednesday night... the sereal feeling has set in as it has been such an amazing feat of Vida Latina's incredible achievements to finish this tour with such great success and the perfect feeling of accomplishment.

There are so many words and thoughts to explain the awesome experience we have all shared. So much to still improve on as we are always seeking and striving to better the step we have taken before. Now, with this first door being opened the opportunities and endless possibilities will flow through with graceful power as Vida Latina shapes their future, one step at a time... so here is to the next one...

Disneyland Baby! (Sunday 11.07.2010)

What a way to start a Sunday morning! Taking a stroll through the famous streets of Harajuku (said to have the most outrageous fashion in the world!) everyone loved all the market-type shopping as it was nothing like what is offered in Australia, or anywhere else for that matter. Shoes that had statements of their own, disco clothes, hats, bags, everything and anything you can think of... even accessories such as furry tails (which Yui and Lemona bought to proudly wear the rest of the day).

After lunch we traveled by train to Tokyo DISNEYLAND - the only words to describe it "DISNEYLAND BABY!!!!" Which all of us kept yelling intermittently throughout the day. We watching Captain EO, which was a Michael Jackson 4D music video clip (one of the characters sneezed and we got sprayed... thus the 4D effect... it was great fun!) we wondered around eating junk food and taking photos... taking in the magic and beauty of Disney... so wonderful! Unfortunately, the rain took away any hopes of seeing the amazing night time parade, which was sad however all of us were so exhausted I think we were glad to be heading back earlier.

Now all tucked away in our hotel rooms for one last night in Tokyo as we prepare to travel back to Osaka tomorrow morning. Then only two days left in the magnificent efficient country as we fly home late Wednesday night (arriving early Thursday morning)... this trip has gone so quickly... although it's not quite over... all the shows and workshops are now done and the sense of achievement is ingrained within us all.

Vida Latina is the first Australia Theatrical Latin Dance Company to accomplish such greatness... and this is just the beginning!

We're Officially on 'Hor-i-days'!! (Saturday 10.07.2010)

Sleeping in and then conducting the last workshops we all supported each other throughout the afternoon and late into the night... and hanging out with the most loveliest and most handsome man Masayuki Hanawa... who looked after the Vida Latina dancers and crew during the show and workshops. It was a lovely way to finish the 'work' side of the trip... as once today was finished we were all officially on holiday (hor-i-days as it's pronounced in slag Japanese)... so after enjoying a lovely dinner trying chicken heart and all sorts of other crazy cuisines... we headed back to the hotel, ensuring we weren't catching the last train... as we agreed you only needed that experience once! Kind of like skydiving... you live through it once just to say you really did it, then never again!

Wowing Tokyo with Latin Cabaret (Friday 09.07.2010)

We woke early and walked the streets of Tokyo, an awesome experience. Lots of photos have been taken where all we are doing is looking up through the huge buildings and taking in the magnificent difference this city offers.



We also visited a popular market place and temple in the middle of Tokyo, it was crazy busy but great fun! After a full day we prepared for our last show: Latin Cabaret in Tokyo. The show was amazing and we wowed the audiences yet again with something they did not expect. Feeling like super stars we continued to dance and party with everyone who came to see us, it was so much fun and everyone had a great night... then just like Cinderella we had to get to the station before midnight to catch the infamous "last train"... we packed up and in a split second we were off... racing to the train. Along the way we ran into a gentleman who had come to see the show (he loved it) we named him Mr Miyagi (he's real name is Mr. Honda), Mio asked him to help us make our way through the subway to the last train. After a couple of transfers we boarded the "last train"... having a little bit of prior warning this train was packed! Literally packed! None of us have ever experienced anything like it... tempers and drunkenness were unfortunate incidents we experienced... but thankful all survived. It was a huge day and with a hugely successful final show for the Japan 2010 tour! Go Vida Latina!

Arriving in Tokyo (Thursday 08.07.2010)

Arriving in Tokyo we all felt like country kids going on a school excursion to the big smoke. This is a big city! So many people, so much efficiency and everywhere you look there are huge billboards advertising something cool. Visiting shops and department stores we felt even more behind the times as the fashion in Tokyo is incredible, if you want to express yourself... then you are free to do so in Tokyo - it's magical!

Tucked safely in our hotel rooms we planned an early start for Friday (shopping during the day and then the very last Cabaret show that night...)

EFFICIENCY REPORT

It is unanimous Japan is the most efficient country in the world! Everything has a precise and perfect purpose... here is a list of things each of us have thought are the most efficient (and these are just some examples):

BIDET: "car wash for your bum" we are all slightly addicted to the experience of using a bidet for the first, second, third and now each time we visit the loo...

VERTICAL CAR PARKS: like in a lego set, the car drives in and is taken up in an lift type thing to be stacked on top of each other - incredible

CUP HOLDERS: not just for cars, but they are on tram, trains, buses and even in random places. The designs are so efficient that you don't even see they are there until you need it, then voila! Cup holder!

ESCALATOR CLEANER: there is a sponge at the end of the hand rail cleaning it as it rotates... genius!

Banana & Japenese Sports Drink: A Cure For All

Fresh from our rooms at midday for a 'day off' we all meet in the hotel lobby heading out the lunch where we had a great rice meal - we were all glad to be back on track with the fine food experiences again. Unfortunately, Chris was totally under the weather... taking to action stations yet again there were thoughts of taking him to the doctors as well but after sitting in the middle of the Hiroshima shopping mall (people staring at us as they walked past, people don't sit like that here), Chris ate a banana and drank some fancy Japanese sports drink and soon came good (even when we aren't performing, we are drawing attention some how!). Tomorrow we have a very very early start to travel to Tokyo for workshops, the last Latin Cabaret performance and much more fun!

World Heritage Land Mark: The Ohtorii Gate (Tuesday 06.07.2010)

Waking early we traveled to see the famous World Heritage Land Mark: The Ohtorii Gate (oo-tore-ee) and it was magical. We climbed Mt. Misen, which was a huge task yet totally rewarding once at the top! Visiting all the shrines along the way such as the eternal flame which is said to have been burning for over 1200 years and was such a special experience, however we were all a little upset about not seeing Baboons!




Heading back quickly to hold the afternoon workshops which went really well. However very late, in the wee hours of the morning, Brian (one of our photographers) admitted that his ankle injury had progressed severely enough to seek medical attention. On the way to the injury clinic at 3am Mio was talking to the lovely taxi driver, who thought Brian must have been a parliamentary dignitary with all of us traveling with him to the hospital - Mio laughed as she translated "he thinks we are accompanying a VIP", to which we replied... he is, he's our photographer :-) This taxi driver was so nice and has been given the nickname JAZZ because on his driver profile the word Jazz was listed as one of his likes... so now JAZZ will be who we call whenever we need a taxi in Hiroshima!

INJURY REPORT

I thought it was a good time to let everyone know about the injuries endured so far...

* Annette = sore foot (with all the walking and performing she has coped well)
* Brian = sore ankle (possibly a sprain but we're not sure... he is ok, just needs to rest it)
* Simone = torn fingernail (during the Fukui cabaret her fake fingernail was ripped off, but with strapping tape all seems to be ok)
* Lenny's black suitcase = rolling handle (the handle used when pulling the suitcase was completely ripped out... leaving only a pink scarf to be used as an akward yet necessary substitute) 
* Shankkar's suitcase = broken wheel (on the first day, one of the wheels from the suitcase simply came off. Shanky has been doing a good job balancing it on one-wheel as we walk the streets of Japan)
* Navvi's thong = blow out (Navvii's thongs suffered as she flopped her way around the mall in search of a new pair of shoes today)
Everyone else (and other luggage) seems to be in good health... I will keep this updated...

Hiroshima - Day Two (Monday 05.07.10)

We spent the afternoon shopping and enjoyed a fantastic meal at a Japanese family restaurant; which is the equivalent to Sizzler in Australia only better - just like all the food and service over here - it's just better in every respect. All fueled up we visited the Hiroshima Memorial Park and Museum. While walking through the park a Japanese gentlemen chatting to us, Mio again doing a marvelous job of translating. He was a survivor of the Hiroshima bombing (he was 17 when the bomb hit and he lost his entire family. He was further away from the hypocentre at school when it dropped and says it's still a miracle he survived). He took us around the memorial park explaining different things and sharing local knowledge. It was incredibly interesting, yet is totally unexplainable how everyone felt during the tour and especially when walking through the museum, words can not describe. It was an experience which will stay with all of us.





Spending a little more time shopping in the Hiroshima mall we all headed back to the hotel to do some much needed washing... with a few laughs and 2 hours later, we are all ready for bed. An early early start tomorrow to do some sight seeing before an afternoon of workshops. We have 2 more days in Hiroshima so more fun updates to come...

Hiroshima - Day One (Sunday 04.07.10)

Today was the biggest of all the days on the Japan 2010 tour... today we were traveling to Hiroshima (Mio's home town) to perform our full stage production: Latin Fantasy: SAKURA. We started out fairly early after another late evening so none of us have had a full night sleep yet. We enjoyed the complimentary breakfast at the hotel with both Shankkar and Simone using the breakfast trays as plates instead of using the bowls intended for the scrambled egg and rice... so a good start to the morning really.

Conveniently walking straight into the train station from the hotel we boarded one of three trains we were to be catching during our journey. Everyone in their seats with the bags piled around us we were able to get a small amount of shut-eye for about an hour. Unfortunately, this first train was delayed slightly about 8 minutes, and Mio expressed some concern due to the relatively tight transfer we had to make at the next station. The rest of us were a little bit oblivious to the unexpected drama this was about to cause. We all started to organise ourselves, ready to get off this train and catch the all important Bullet train to Hiroshima and this was where the drama begins... due to the delay we had literally 60 seconds (I'm not kidding!) to get off the first train, up two flights of stairs, around the corner, through the ticketing centre, find platform 11 and down two flights of stairs. But let me explain how we were all feeling with with symbols: *#^~!

We ran like we had never run before, we weaved in between so many other people trying to keep as a group which of course was not easy. Yui and Simone were stuck behind the slowest moving gentlemen, Chris had to scale the flight of stairs with heavy costume bag, suitcases and trying to his ticket out. Those of the group who made it up the first stairs quickly accidently ran past platform 11 and Mio had to chase after them... as they all turned and bolted back and the vision of Lenny running with a bright pink suitcase in his right hand, a black suitcase in his left, an adidas bag over one shoulder, a camera bag around his neck and a furry koala attached swinging in the middle of his chest... will stay in the memory banks forever! 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12... with hearts pounding each of us leaped onto the train as the woosh of the doors closing was the most scariest sound we ever heard as Lenny as his koala literally scrapped onto the train! We were all very much awake now.

A two hour bullet train ride, a tram ride we arrived at the Hiroshima-shi Minamikumin Bunka Centre (min-a-me-koo-min boon-ka centre) where we had time to relax in the foyer after our exhausting journey. The venue was wonderful and the lighting technicians were incredible, the most efficient, polite and competent technician any of us have ever worked with. Preparing costuming and staging we all worked together as Mio translated from English to Japanese and back again. At 5.30pm the doors opened and we set ourselves back stage, at 5.59pm we held hands and Lenny spoke to us about how this is the most powerful experience and that it was not about how many people were out there watching but about the achievement.

The show was utterly amazing... Mio's story has now been told. Expressing herself and baring everything Mio said she has a sereal feeling, yet full of achievement knowing that everyone loved the show. Although there were slight insecurities about the response from those in Hiroshima, however receiving flowers at the end of the show captured the support and accolades expressed by those in the audience. We relaxed after the show with some more incredible food... we had a late night and finally a late start, with all of us meeting downstairs the next morning at 12pm and Monday was to be our first 'day off' during the tour...

Workshops in Fukui (Saturday 03.07.10)

Meeting in the hotel lobby everyone was chipper to be awake at 8am (not!), with pouring rain we piled into taxi's then onto trains and traveled to Fukui - which is considered a country town in Japan. The place was lovely (same food displays, same wonderful hospitality). Our hotel was right next to the train station and just up the road from the Salsa Lab - where we held 3 hours of workshops (Lenny and Mio doing a marvelous job, as usual) everyone who attended loved it. Squeezing in the most powerful of power naps (about 10 minutes) we were all running on very little sleep, however lots of excitment as we took a moment to remember...we are actually in Japan!
Latin Cabaret in Fukui was a huge success with everyone being blown away by Lenny, Mio and the Vida Latina dancers. A thousand photos and lots of social dancing later we all returned to our hotel, exhausted but satisfied with the second of our wonderful Latin Cabaret's. We slept for about 5 hours, to wake up and catch trains to our third destination: Hiroshima.

Kyoto...a 'tiny' city (Friday 02.07.10)

Arriving and having a slight sleep in we set out in the morning to do some shopping in Kyoto city before the workshops and evening cabaret performance. Kyoto is the most traditional city in Japan and everything is tiny... tiny houses, tiny doors, tiny streets, tiny cars and anyone taller than Mio felt like somewhat of a giant. The city was so clean and very nice. We ate, we shopped, we walked the lovely streets trying on hats and looking at the fantastic plastic food displays. Just like window shopping for clothing, the food here is on display to entice and intrigue you and before you know it you're eating a double choc banana carmel cream crepe!




In the afternoon we went to Spanish Harlem Latin Club: two workshops and then the first performance of Latin Cabaret. The beautiful salsa club venue was the ideal setting for Latin Cabaret with the audience sitting in booths and chandelier lighting hanging above us. The performance was wonderful and everyone enjoyed it, the audience was smiling the entire time, adding comments like "oh, so sexy" and "beautiful, amazing dancers". After the show we all enjoyed social dancing and finished the evening at 2.30am with Izakaya (ee-za-ka-ya): where we tried all sorts of food:
Raw chicken: Annette, Simone, Lenny & Ronan ("it tastes just like chicken!")
Raw liver: Ronan, Chris & Shankkar ("it doesn't taste anything like chicken!")
Everyone agreed the food was amazing and a great way to end the first show of the tour... we headed back to the hotel to enjoy a total of 4 hours sleep before waking up and traveling to Fukui very early the next morning.