by Mary Thompson
I tell my friends in the States that about all I miss living here (besides their company of course) is copious HOT water (unobtainable from my "Mr. Coffee" shower water heater) and Contra dancing - the joyous energetic activity which I enjoyed at least once a week when I lived in Los Angeles.
For the uninitiated, Contra dancing (NOT to be confused with Country & Western dancing or a revolutionary movement) is an American dance form that developed from the English & Scottish country dances brought to the United States by early settlers. Couples dance with other couples in a long line, executing moves which are essentially the same as those used in square dancing. After a sequence of moves, the couple has moved up or down the line one place and the sequence is repeated. The dance patterns are called to live music, usually jigs and reels. The tempo is lively and the dance creates an exciting energy which builds as the evening progresses.
One December evening, when I checked my e-mail, I was delighted to find a message announcing a Tropical Dance Vacation in St. Croix. I wasted no time signing up and on a Wednesday morning in early February, I eagerly flew off to spend a week with 150 other dancers in the US Virgin Islands.
The largest of the three U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Croix's 82 square miles are filled with tropical beauty. It was originally settled by the Danes and for many years had a thriving sugar industry. Rements of sugar processing mills dot the island and Danish architecture lines the streets of the islandTs two towns. The Virgin Islanders include African Americans, many decendants of the African slaves brought to the island to work the plantations, emigratnts from the other Caribbian islands, Puerto Ricans, and transplants from the continental United States and the island culture reflects an interesting blend of these different traditions.
We stayed at a lovely beach resort, Colony Cove, near Christiansted, the larger of the two towns. We filled our days with typical Caribbian vacation fun. While I passed on the mountain bike rides and diving trips that were offered, I did enjoy hiking in an old sugar plantation, bird watching where ever I could (I saw my first-ever Pearly-eyed Thrasher while drinking coffee in McDonald's), swimming, horseback riding through the few miles of virgin tropical forest that remains, snorkeling the corral reefs at nearby Buck Island, doing a little shopping and just hanging out on the beach. Our evenings were filled too. After a community pool-side dinner, we walked over to the 40 by 60 foot portable suspend wood dance floor which was set up on a nearby tennis court and covered with a deep blue tent top decorated with big white stars. Most nights we danced Contras and squares from 8-11 pm to the music of two great bands - Wild Asparagas (calling by George Marshall) and L7's (calling by Kathy Anderson) .
Friday we danced in the afternoon and went into town after dinner to participate in Jump Up- a local street festival. Highlights were listening dancing to the rich calypso music of steel drum bands and watching the macko jumbi performers. Mocko jumbies are masked dancers, dressed in vibrantly colored costumes who execute a traditional West African dance while wearing 10 to 20 foot high stilts. In Africa, this dance has religious significance, but in its translation to the Western hemisphere, it has evolved into a secular dance performed on festive occasions. On Sunday, we held a special afternoon dance to which we invited the local residents of St. Croix. Several dozen attended and learned how much fun they could have Contra dancing.
As might be expected, most of the dancers were from the Eastern United States, delighted to escape their frigid winter weather. I found I got no sympathy when I complained of the Antigua cold spell where temperatures dropped to around 40 degrees F. I was the only participant living outside North America and quickly became known as the "Guatemalan bird lady."
The week went by far too quickly. I am not sure that my body could have held out much longer (it took me almost a week to rest up from my vacation) but as I boarded the plane that brought me back home, my spirit was ready to keep on dancing.