Dance, Dance, Dance

No, this is not a reference to Haruki Murakami's mesmirising book.  There are things about Beijing that visitors may not see (or understand) and I want to make sure some of them come up here.  Does it mean that everything in Beijing is great? No!  But it does mean that you can fall in love with Beijing despite all of the negative things that sometimes appear.

On almost any summer night, you can go around Beijing and many of the open areas, parks or playgrounds are covered with middle-aged and elderly couples engaged in ... dance and dance.  Usually it's western ballroom dance but sometimes you can find taichi or other, more synchronized practice sessions.

As a westerner (yes, Indians are also westerners here), I didn't "get it" at first.  I appreciated it but then I asked a local about who organizes all of these dance sessions.  They looked at me strangely and didn't even understand the question.  I pressed on, "Does the government organize these sessions or the local neighborhood committees or ... who?"  The answer: The sessions are completely spontaneous, nobody organizes them!

It just happens when someone with a big jukebox (maybe with exernal speakers) runs a power line and then just starts playing music.  Someone will come and offer to lead the groups and then everyone will just start dancing.  The skill level isn't too high but ... who cares?  It's a beautiful thing to see and everyone/anyone can join in without worrying about payment or embarrassment.  People do have some "fees" to cover costs but they are so low that it makes the dancing almost free and doesn't hinder one-time visitors from just joining without thinking about it.

I have never seen something like this anywhere else.  Sure, there are sometimes outdoor dancing sessions in other cities but they are always so organized and transitory.  This is just a reflection of the desire of the local people to be outside in the evening and dance until the sun goes down.  What could be better?