An interesting issue I encountered before leaving for Portugal was the shape of my butt . . . It' too flat! . . . Once you watch the video you'll see that the preferred bumbum for Kizomba is a "bubble butt". This realization came to me less than 30 days before my trip . . . Oh dear . . .
So I turned to a personal trainer, Tony Kroll, for help fluffing up my butt. Tony's reaction after watching a few seconds of this video was . . . "Oh my!" . . . Then he went straight into trainer mode: Here's what you need to do . . . 100 squats a day! Suddenly using public restrooms became part of my butt-building program.
No matter what your backside looks like, Kizomba is a very sexy dance. It originated in Angola in the 1990s and is sung mostly in Portuguese since Angola was once a colony of Portugal. Although it's popular in Europe and other places, it's nearly unheard of in Minnesota. Fortunately, I was able to take lessons from Kaija Freborg and Eda Lazaro at Four Seasons Dance Studio in Minneapolis. Kaija had just returned from a workshop with Mestre Petchu in Portugal and referred me to Jazzy Studio in Lisbon.
. . . Stay tuned for Karen's dance (and Kizomba butt) . . .
One thing I like about traveling is being exposed to different cultures and the way they define female beauty. Not all the world believes tall and thin is beautiful. Kizomba comes from a culture where full-figured women are beautiful and I love that! Want to be sexy? Dance sexy, act sexy, forget how your culture defines "sexy" and just move to the music.
Now for the dance . . .
Isabelle and Felicien are considered one of the top Kizomba couples.
To see the full trip, click here
"I have a universal body . . . beautiful in any culture!" - Esperanza
I had the incredible honor of working with Ana Rita and Mauro Miguel King (originally from Angola). Mauro is the son of Mestre Petchu who many consider to be the "Master" of Kizomba. Being with Ana Rita and Mauro was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I will cherish forever!! Thank you, Ana Rita and Mauro - from the bottom of my heart!
Here they are dancing Sembe . . .
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