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| What's that noise echoing around town? It's ZUMBAAAA! |
Before I joined Peace Corps I had a vision of what my life would be like. - I would live in a mud hut. I wouldn't have running water. I would be living in an isolated, sparsely-populated village where wifi access wouldn't definitely not be an option. With that in mind, I thought that my projects might include building an electricity grid, setting up a water system or even helping out at the local hospital with basic triage. I didn't imagine that I would be leading a class... for Zumba! But I am surely glad that I am.
What started off as an idea from some brief conversations with local youth and some support from friends back home, slowly turned into a regular group that has been meeting for over a year now. We are a rather small group, yet consistent. No less than 4, no more than 8. Through this class I am noticing several things. First, the girls feel comfortable around me. This took a bit of time. In the beginning, I noticed that there was a good mix of boys and girls. Once the boys realized that they would have to use their hips, they quickly got embarrased and would sit down and just watch. I could see that they wanted to participate, as they would get up for another song and dance again, only to sit back down when any hip action made its way into the routine. I asked why they weren't willing to try the routines, they said that they simply don't have hips. "Only girls have hips." to which I replied "Really? Well, I wonder what all those football players use to kick the ball, then." They were still not convinced. But it was of no concern to me. If the girls want to continue, I would be there.
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| We insist on having fun! |
Zumba is not something that many people have a chance to do here in Albania, yet it is accessible for those with the motivation. We use Youtube videos to learn routines, practicing with videos projected on the wall. We simply follow along. We learn together (and make mistakes together). It's not about being perfect, it is about having fun, exercising, and doing something positive together.
We use music from several influences - latin (salsa, merengue, tango, reggaeton & cumbia), latin pop, hip-hop, pop, middle-eastern influence, and more). I like to pick videos that use people of different ethnicities, ages, body types, using both men and women. As the students learn with these diverse people through their videos, they get to share a sort-of bond with people of all backgrounds.
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| Gummi time at Kampi Pa Emer (summer camp)! |
After 9 months of dancing with these youth, they asked me if I could teach the younger kids to dance. They also volunteered to help teach the classes with me! I didn't realize at the time, but this might just turn into something sustainable. Again, I don't teach the classes so much as learn the routines alongside them. Thus they are just as skilled as I am. The little kids Zumba has really taken off, bringing up to 25 kids at a time. Imagine for a moment the 25 little kids ages 4 - 10 wiggling to "Uptown Funk" or shaking to Moves Like Jagger. Adorable! They love to move, dance, and just act silly. Some of these kids have very little at home and really take to activities like this that let them just be kids. This has only been possible with the help and coordination of the older kids. Thus real community impact is starting to happen.
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| Me with an adorable lil Zumba princess |
As of yet, we just make due with what clothes we have, but I would love to see some actual workout t-shirts or fun arm-bands, hip bands or something to make it more "Zumba-ey." Maybe a magic donor will arrive one day... Who knows? Maybe a flash mob in front of the Municipality will actually happen come spring time. :-) Yeah, this is Peace Corps. And yes, it is pretty frickin' awesome.
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