030tango Road Trip – Day 01 – Amsterdam Tango I

published on
September 9th 2015
Written by Jonas
Tegel Airport during 030tango Road Trip
Finally on the road! Like many Tango dancers, I’m not a morning person… at all! So getting up at 4 to catch my flight to Amsterdam was not easy. Being a bit nervous about it, it worked out well and I was rewarded with a beautiful sunrise at the airport!
One and half hours later I landed in Amsterdam and went on my way to the city.
Right off the plane, I had my first interview appointment for the trip and it started with a challenge. I never met Jan Dirk van Abshoven before, but a friend of mine recommended him as a very active member of the Amsterdam Tango Community and a long-time milonguero dancer. We met in the morning at 9 at De Bakkerswinkel, a beautiful bakery near Westerpark. Jan Dirk proposed it as an interview spot and I gladly accepted.
All worries were without a cause. Jan Dirk is a wonderful conversationalist and had many stories to tell from his 26 years of Tango experience. He is one of the Organizers of the Amsterdam Marathon, the Tangotrain after Christmas, and publishes his own Tango magazine: La Cadena! More from that in the first episode.
Jan Dirk, Tango organizer in Amsterdam
Then I dropped my stuff off at Sing's place, who offered to host me in Amsterdam. To be honest I can't say when I first met Sing. He kind of always been there since I traveled for dancing and is probably one of the most well know social dancers in Europe. And wherever he is, you can be sure, that there are awesome afterparties!
We had a second breakfast and Sing showed me around the city. It's been around 20 years that I have been to Amsterdam and besides the Grachten probably everything has changed. Or my view has changed from being 15 years old (and we know why a 15-year-old goes to Amsterdam) to now...
Amsterdam Grachten during the 030tango Road Trip
When we arrived back at his place, Sing had to go in front of the camera. He dances for 20 years and tries hard to keep his amount of trips this year below 20... I don't think he can manage. He is a true Tango addict and milonguero and the perfect match for this project.
Sing-Tjoe Yeh Tango dancer from Amsterdam
In the evening we went to dinner with 2 other tango dancers and off to the milonga.
If you talk with people about Amsterdam Tango, one Milonga is always mentioned: Los Locos!
So I had to see it and we arrived at around 9. An early time for a Berlin dancer, but as the Salon is already closing at 12, we had some time left to dance!
Milonga Los Locos in Amsterdam
I talked a bit with Martin, one of the hosts of Los Locos, before and he allowed me to film a bit at the milonga, to catch the Los Locos vibe. It's a place where Seniors play Bingo normally, but once a week people transform it into a Tango Salón with their dancing. To the music of Jacob "El Jirafa" Vosmaer, the evening ended in what it's all about: dancing!
So after 21.5 hours of being on the road, I finally went to bed on the first day of the 030tango Road Trip!

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km count: 544