Sunday, July 24th, 2011 Day 3 - I had so much fun at the African Dance workshop I couldn't pass up the opportunity of going again. My sister came with me, interested from what I'd told her the day before. That day, I made sure to charge the camera battery before we left: something you should always check before going on an excursion! We went in for 11:00 because that's when the workshop was (unlike noon the day before). We browsed a bit since we were a few minutes early and as I predicted, she really liked the merchandise. We hurried on back to the Parterre as the start time approached with the promise of returning to make some purchases afterwards.
We sat and waited a good deal. For some reason, they were very behind schedule, so the African dance started a good twenty minutes late. The dance master Oumar N'diaye Martinos seemed disappointed that he was not able to show us nearly as many dance moves, but his smile soon returned. It was most definitely worth going again because it was a different routine and none of the steps were a repeat of the day before. Overall I found the choreography a little more challenging, but still accessible and enjoyable. What made the session special was that Oumar sang a fair amount along to the music for us, which was really neat and also had a guest with him: his sister! He brought his sister along as a treat so he said and invited her out on stage a couple of times to show us some moves. She is clearly a very talented dancer. We must've looked really funny trying to emulate her moves! She was a force, just powering through these moves with no explanations while we tried to copy her. So I still enjoyed Oumar more because of his ease with teaching the steps, but it was awesome to see them dancing side by side. 
I was pleased by my dance effort for the second day in a row. I danced a little bit longer I think than the day before (just over 30 minutes). However, on Saturday I was picking up the dance moves more easily (again, because I think the steps were a bit easier). My sister managed to snap a few action shots and all in all, I think I look like I'm doing a credible job. The most important part is that it was a lot of fun!I looked up Oumar N'diaye Martinos when I got home later that day. He has a dance DVD as was mentioned at the end of the workshop. It is called Danse pour tout le monde, which really fits with his philosophy; his encouragements did include the idea that African dance is for everyone and that everyone is able to do it. He is an accomplished performer (both a singer and dancer) and he has a dance school (I had hoped in Montreal, but it is in Quebec City). He has been travelling to the Festival Nuits d'Afrique to share dance for 25 years, so he truly has been at the festival since the very beginning and comes back every year! No wonder the festival is known for his workshops. (For more information, you can check out his website: http://www.oumarndiayemartinos.com/).
We took a lunch break after the workshop. Though they encouraged us to stay on sight (unlike what I previously noted, there was more than just ice cream - there were actual meals too), I found it was important to get out of the heat and take a break. So we popped into the Complexe Desjardins at Place des Arts like I had the day before. Once refueled, we went back to the festival to browse the handcrafted merchandise again. My sister was delighted with everything, which made it difficult for her to choose. She found a beautiful banner with a blue giraffe on it for her room décor, procured some leather bracelets, a Celtic Love knot book like mine and a beautiful t-shirt with an elephant (she loves elephants!!). I simply couldn't leave without picking up the beautiful mobile I had seen the day before. With enough cash this time in hand, I purchased it and got a discounted price since I had bought earrings there the day before. Because we'd taken such a long time browsing and deciding, we were in the full sun a lot. We were still able to hear the musical acts of the afternoon from the vendor tents. We were not particularly interested in the one that was on after we were finished with our purchases. So, after making a donation to the education fund table, we decided to head back home. It was great to share the experience with my sister. I'm already looking forward to going back next year!
67 metros, 39 days...
