Photo credit Jose Luis Funes

With the traditional end of winter/beginning of spring storm of Santa Rosa behind it, Buenos Aires is now officially in Spring. Arguably one of the best times to visit the city, Spring is warming up the city offering sunny days and cool evenings, and the city is prettying itself up with spring time bloom.

Locals in Buenos Aires love sunny weather. The awakening of the jacaranda blossoms also signals an increase in the warmth and joy within the people. Step outside on the first sunny day after a period of rain in Buenos Aires and you’ll notice a spring in the step and whistle in the air as portenos come out of the woodwork to celebrate the sun. The parks are starting to fill up with sun lovers as a carpet of purple blooms blanket the city. Jacaranda trees splash their colour about the urban jungle and hidden up in the Bosques de Palermo is a promenade made up entirely of jacaranda trees. It’s well worth a wander through on the coming sunny afternoons.

The tango world is now emerging after taking many dancers took a well deserved break. The end of winter saw the World Tango Champions crowned for 2014 after the two week long Mundial de Tango, where the best tango dancers from around the world converged on Buenos Aires to see who would take the title of Best Salon Tango dancers (traditional tango) and Best Stage Tango (what you see in a tango show).

Taking out the title for Campeones de Escenario was Manuela Rossi and Juan Malizia Gatti. An engaging performance to watch, this style of tango (Escenario) draws out all the possible dramatic passion that tango can possess and combines it with dangerously high leg flicks and intricate leg twists that leaves you wondering exactly how the woman extracts herself from the twist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XRG3hKMDF4

Although some tourists may argue that tango shows are not ‘the real tango’, it is indeed an authentic branch of tango whose dancers work extremely hard to achieve a high level of this discipline of dance. Indeed, tango shows are the only place you are going to see this dynamic form of tango so make sure you catch one.

Crowned Campeones de Salon Tango were Sebastian Acosta and Lorena Gonzalez Cattaneo. This style is the traditional tango and what you are more likely to see if you head to a milonga while you’re in Buenos Aires. In contrast to the stage tango, this style is softer and improvised. The embrace is closer and what it lacks in drama, makes up for in sentiment and connection.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukUu-0G9NHs

This is tango that you will see danced all over the world in a milonga anywhere. It’s close embrace and more subtle movements is what defines it. And this video shows you the grace and connection that tango can embrace. Enjoy.