March 19th 2014: Learning to Dance the Blues in Cambridge

Today after work, my friend had asked me to go check out a free swing dancing lesson, held at the Lobdell Dining Hall in the Student Center at MIT. I decided to get dinner in the area, getting Indian food from Passage to India in town. I decided to go with the Machli Masala (fish saturated in a mixture of chopped onions, ginger, garlic, rare herbs, spices and rich creamy tomato sauce) dinner, 

which comes with a soup and dessert as well, for which I decided to go with the Chicken Soup

and the Rasgulla (homemade cheese balls soaked in sugar syrup).

I wasn't expecting the soup to be beany, but it wasn't too bad. The curry was really good, and I decided to take the leftover curry home. I almost forgot the dessert, and although the sweetness was good, the balls themselves had a pretty weird texture that took a little getting used to.

I had concerns that I would be late for the class, and actually arrived a few minutes late, but thankfully the class started late as well.

Today's lesson was about Rhythm and Blues dancing, and it felt much easier to learn than Salsa, though a little more boring. Still, I liked the lesson very much, and at the end of it, I knew more about how to be the leader, instead of always being backled by my dancing partner. Maybe I should come more often to get better at dancing.

Unfortunately, my fun night was to suddenly come to an end, when I started getting terrible stomach cramps during the last dance. I was forced to bid adieu to my friends, and tried relieving myself in the restroom, to no avail. I took the long, slow and agonizing walk to my car, puking on the sidewalk, without lessening the pain any further. Somehow I managed to drive all the way home, even stopping to get gas, although at several points I thought I was going to faint from the pain. Plunking myself into bed, I was just glad when the worst of the pain finally stopped. I guess that means I'm never going back to Passage to India again.