How I got into bellydance

Aloha My Lovelies,

Today I decided to practice some dance routines. I am lucky in that I have a mini dance studio in the house, with a wooden floor, mirrors and a stereo system. I could even turn on the AC if it gets hot. Before I moved there, I used to come over and practice for hours.

I've been bellydancing since 2002, and I've never really talked about how I got into it. Bellydance is the one hobby that I've kept up with and love with a passion. I was first inspired by Shakira, and decided to sign up with a teacher, Patrice aka Kahjulah on campus while I was at SJSU. The bellydance community is small, and I still run into her once in a while.

However, it wasn't until I went to Germany that spring break that I decided that I would make bellydance my hobby. While I was in Germany with my aunt we ate at a Persian restaurant, and there was a dancer. She was exotic looking, I loved her outfit, and her enthusiasm. She also pulled me up to dance, and my aunt took pictures.

So when I came back to the states, I immediately looked in the phonebook, and called the only bellydance teacher that was listed. Bellydance has become much more popular since then, but back in 2002 the bellydance community was still much smaller.

Anyway that teacher, Zahra, called herself Jewel, and she was from Egypt. She was huge, and I could barely understand her English, but she could take any average girl and turn her into a performer. She was rigid, and made us do drills over and over. After the drills, she would make us do various routines over and over. She was strict, but we learned. Because she was so fat and she couldn't move too much, I couldn't really see what she was doing. But somehow, we ended up doing the moves with a smile. I bonded with the girls that summer. We would just sit around and talk about boys after practice and complain about the summer heat.

Jewel was different, and a little crazy, but she left the biggest impression on me. Since she's Middle Eastern, she introduced me to the culture. She inspired me to go out and learn more about the culture. She made me my first professional costume. She introduced me to different types of bellydance: veils, double veils, sword, cane, candleabra, zills, drums, isis wings, old Arabic bellydance videos. It was with her that I joined my first troupe, called the Jewels of the Oasis. When I joined, I danced at an Indian restaurant (even though Indian dance and bellydance are different). We also did a couple of other performances, such as office parties.

I stayed with her until 2003. Unfortunately we discovered that she had multiple personality disorder. She didn't take her medication and she lashed out at all of us until we all left. I don't know how she is doing now or where she is, but I still think about her. I did run into her brother in 2006, 3 years after I left. I told him how much his sister meant to me as a dancer.

While I was in Spain from 2004-2005 I did a little belly dancing, as bellydance was also becoming trendy over there, especially since there is tons of Arabic influence in Spain. Shakira was also popular there, of course. I found a studio that offered 3 hour long classes. The classes were always either in Spanish or Catalan. I didn't really have to listen, rather just dance along. I still have the coin belts I bought over there.

After I came back to California, I decided to get back into bellydance and joined another troupe, Jewels of Opar. I also learned how to dance with the sword. My friend who I met in my first troupe and reconnected with after I came back to CA taught me how to dance with the sword. She was half white, and half Native. She stood tall, and reminded me of Giselle Bunchen. She just exuded confidence, and she had a powerful presence on stage. She taught me how to be dramatic and sassy on stage.

I dance with an Iberian scimitar, and sword dance is very special to me. Not many dancers do it, and that's probably because it's really difficult to find a teacher that will teach you how to dance on the floor with a sword on your head. But my friend learned from Jewel, and then she taught me. It's been one of the greatest gifts I've gotten.

I don't dance in a troupe right now, as my schedule is unpredictable. Plus, I am not the best with choreography. Not to mention that there was serious girl drama in my last troupe. At one point there were 18 girls in our troupe, since I was new, I really wasn't allowed to put in my two cents. So now I just dance alone, and come up with my own choreopgraphy when I have to perform and it works out fine. But I would be open to joining a troupe if it were smaller, and I bonded with the girls.

I've taken classes in hip hop and latin dance, tango, as well as other forms. It's fun, and I love all types of dance. But none of them have stuck with me like bellydance.