Gothla 2008

Still tired after Gothla (going back to work today was probably a bad idea!). But we did have a fabulous time.

We weren't sure about when we'd get there on the Friday, but in the end after leaving Colchester about half two we managed to arrive in Leicester at about half five giving us time to find a chippy and get dressed up a bit to go to the Hafla on friday night. The Hafla was brilliant, I think my highlights were Morgana, Sashi and Ariellah, but I liked the group with the gypsy style skirts (I can't find my programme so have lost their name) and Raqs Macabre reduced us to tears of laughter. It was also really nice to meet Angela from Tribe Zuza and Jesse who I'd met at Raqs Britannia. After the hafla we went off to the Quebec club, and danced our little socks off for a few hours before turning in.

Saturday we relaxed in the morning before wandering over to the Souk to look at the pretty things and do a little light shopping before Ariellah's workshop. Lunch in the cafe / sandwich place next door (the people in there were really nice to us) and then on to Ariellah's workshop. I was half really looking forward to some serious focus on arms, as I've found them really hard (lots of boxing doesn't make for graceful arms) and half dreading it as I find them really hard. However, it was brilliant and I really felt I took a lot away from it. I found Ariellah a great teacher and really nice too and kept up better than I thought I would. It's also really nice to dance to music I know and like. And One and Qntal, yay!

After the workshop it was a quick change and out to the buffet meal, we were running a bit late, but were reassured but a couple of dancers we met that the restaurant were happy wiht that so there wasn't an unmanageable rush. We'd only just got out of the hotel when we bumped into Ariellah again, and wandered up to the restaurant with her, listening to Dean's tales of winding up gormless american tourists, and bemoaning chav's who below abuse out of cars. At the restaurant, we got chatting to various people, especially Clare who lived quite locally and Sonia from Germany, living in London.

Food was great and we trolled back to the hotel to get ready. This took a little time (he heh, okay, quite a bit of time), but suitably dolled up we made our way out to the club just in time to catch up with Lee (DJ Cruel Britannia) who my husband Jamie had DJed with when we toured with the Last Dance in 2006, and his lovely lady Laura, before he had to go and DJ. Much dancing and drinking ensued, and I even managed to say hi to Neal from Screaming Banshee Aircrew who I hadn't met before as he's joined the band more recently. We also got chatting with Sonia who we'd met in teh restaurant. Back to the hotel, pack so we don't have to in the morning and go to bed.

Sunday we had the workshop with Ariellah early, so a quick breakfast then off to the workshop. This one I found harder but still managed to pretty much keep up, and felt again that I took a lot away.

Back to the Souk to look at pretties and we bump into Sashi. I'd been sent photos of Keri,my friend from Calfornia, by Shawn last Wednesday (Keri is the girlfriend of Jeff from The Last Dance, and Shawn married to Pete the bassist). I'd known for a while Keri was getting into bellydancing but we were pleasantly surprised to see that she was dancing with Sashi. Hence we introduced ourselves, and it turns out that it's a terribly small world and not only does Keri dance with Sashi, Sashi's known the guys from TLD for years. Thus ensued much swapping of "gory stories" and drinking tales and we all wandered off to lunch together before it was time to make for Sashi's workshop.

Sashi was *mean* :o) !!! she really made us do a serious cardio, running up and down, warm up to get us really flexible before starting to work on the combo's, more like the warm up I do before kick boxing than what I'm used to for dancing. It was effective though and we soon went on to the combo's. Sashi has a completely different style of teaching to Ariellah, and it was really good to move into a different view of it. You see and understand it from more ways. I really enjoyed the workshop and learned a lot to take away with me. Katie was also very pleased to dance to NIN, and me to dance to VNV. Even more surreally, after whole TLD connection with Sashi, in the workshop I bumped into Tamsin and Nadia who I went to school with 15 years ago and who now live in Germany. We instantly recognised each other, bizarre!

Anyway, we pretty much had to disappear immediately the workshop ended as Dean had to be back on set for the independent movie he's been roped into (I'm in it too!) and after a few quick goodbyes and swapping of contact details we zipped back across the country to collapse in an exhausted heap back in Essex!

Hello there

I’ve been soo busy, and it’s quite hard to get time on the computer at home at the moment. Friday’s lunch hour was mainly taken up with a mass of catching up with what people have been up to.

What I have been up to is mainly bellydance related recently. Weekend before last I went to Raqs Britannia in Blackpool. Sarah and Deana the instructors at our class very kindly gave a me a lift and it was nice to hang out with them on the Friday night, but as they were performing on the Saturday afternoon and running a workshop on the Sunday I was primarily up there on my own. Still, I had a great weekend. I met up with Elaine again, who I met at Tribalondon and who apparently knows Jo Violet and Peter French, though to be honest, who doesn’t know Pete French! :P This time she had a whole bunch of friends with her, Nina, Cathy and another friend whose name I have totally forgotten which is terrible. I keep thinking Laura, but I’m not sure.

I also spent quite a bit of time hanging around the music stalls. I got to play an Oud which is similar enough to a mandolin (although tuned very differently) that I could just sit down and play it which was very nice. I also got a free darbouka (tabla) lesson for about an hour which was also good. Drums are fun. Now all I need to do is buy one of each and I’ll be set. Met other nice people, including a lovely couple from Dortmund, Svenja and Hartman, who were incredible dancers and Angela and her partner from Tribe Zuza.

The Bellydance Superstars show on the Saturday night was amazing. Other people said not as good or as long as last year, but not having been last year I didn’t care. I’m still in awe of what Suhaila Salimpour can do with her stomach muscles, and just in general awe of Kami Liddle, Samantha Hasthorpe and Moria.

I did one workshop, a Kami Liddle one which was good, and this time, (I did one at Tribalondon) kept up much better than before. I could have done this one at Tribalondon but I’m glad I chose to do the hip work one then, I’d have struggled with the “spiral, bend and curve” one then.

Didn’t spend much money. Bought a pair of the Sharifwear trousers I have been thinking about and stayed in a basic but very nice B & B, the Vidella.

Since then I have been mostly making tribal bellydance costume with Dean in my spare time for Katie and myself. Bloomers for Katie and skirt and belt for me. Skirt should be finished by now, Dean was going to run the last bits, mainly the hem, on his machine with the hemming foot yesterday, so I get to try it out tonight at class.

Today we are performing at Leigh Folk Festival. It’s my first performance, and I’ll be in the chorus, rather than at the front thankfully. Ease myself into it gradually. It’s nice to be able to be in the chorus now, I prefer that that waiting to be good enough to be at the front and not having been out before. I’m not too proud to be at the back! :)

Jamie’s latex clothes making goes apace. I now have a calf length skirt with a split up the front left and a halter neck crop top with an adjustable neck. Oh and pasties with tassels, however, I don’t think I’ll be going out in those!

Wave Gotik Treffen Festival 2008 - Leipzig

Bullet point round up off the top of my head:

Bands seen:

*Das Ich
*Sigue Sigue Sputnik (not particularly impressed)
*Unheilig

*Destroid (briefly)

*Signal Aout 42 (not impressed)
*Hocico
*Covenant

*Saltatio Mortis (not particularly impressed)
*Faun
*Corvus Corax

Interesting Alcohols drunk:

*Lieblich Mead
*Classic Mead
*Feinherb Mead
*Wikingerblut Mead
*Rhabarber Federweisser
*Rosen Federweisser
*Fennel Spirit
*Ginger Spirit
*Centaury Spirit
*Rowan Spirit
*Sloe Spirit
*4 types of Schwarzbier
*2 types of Pils
Also 6 different types of fruit juice (Orange, Mango, Melon, Pear, Strawberry, Cherry)


Things I did:
*Learned a lot more about fitting corsets
*Managed to eat something except “pig in a bun”
*Sold corsets (quite a few I hope)
*Translated lots from German and French
*Introduced Amanda to various new bizarre alcoholic beverages
*Wore an awful lot of factor 50+ sunscreen
*Danced lots
*Broke my mobile phone :o( (Not actively broke it, but it is now deceased)
*Met Bruno from Das Ich
*Watched a rather good fire show with some bellydancing in it between Faun and Corvus Corax playing.

Things I bought:
*Two pairs of cyberdog wraparound trousers (very comfy)
*Red scarf/sash (to keep sun off dreads there and for bellydancing here)
*New ear tusks (real ones, not big at all, but I’ve sized up to 3mm)
*Faun album
*Harry Potter und der Stein der Weissen
*Harry Potter und die Kammer des Schreckens
*Agra bells (!!!)
*:wumpscut: t-shirt

New places visited this year:

Darkflower – very nice little club, we ended up there on Sunday, had a really good time (except for the sleazeball I threatened with violence on the dance floor, but that’s not a reflection of the club now).

I met loads of people, but none of them are friends on here! Photos to follow.

Hello from Leipzig!

Well, we made it here, we've booked in, found the really good chinese restaurant again, and found beer. We've also found cheap internet access! I might even blog more while I'm here.



See you all soon!

M.

Busy busy!

Have I told you how busy my life is? Probably, I normally do. Anyway, here is a brief update for anyone who cares:

- Last weekend, Club Antichrist, MUCH quieter than previous ones and a little disappointing, will still be going to the next one though.

- Tonight, bellydancing class, Yay!

- More self-employed work should be arriving on my mat today. Plenty of time to complete it before...

- Wave Gotik Treffen next week!! Yay! Next Thursday we fly out to Leipzig for six days (four of them Festival) of music, bands, goths, dancing, german beer, mead, etc etc. I can't wait. I'm working on Thomas' corset stall (Brute Force Leather / Fallen Angel Fashions for some of the time, which should be a right laugh. Corvus Corax, Mesh, Necessary Response and Covenant are playing!

- I have ALMOST finished my "made with no pattern" pantaloons, I need to sew casings for elastic on the waist and cuffs, but using Dean's overlocker made the seams WAY easier. They are red, very red. The skirt - yet to be started - will be large and black.

- With any luck my sari pants will arrive from Pedralta soon. I have lurid purple and burgundy/cream. Should do for dancing, clubbing and potentially for hot days at work.

- I have now got four braided spiral ropes for my belt, and half a hair piece worth in smaller weight.

- Jamie has recovered from his cardiac incident and now has a referral to the cardiologist at the General.

- I still haven't managed to spend my Amazon vouchers from my birthday.