Salsa by the sea

I was in Austria with my girlfriend and other friends, when we decided to drive through Slovenia, to Rovinj in Croatia. It was an enjoyable and beautiful couple of hours’ drive!  Rovinj is a small beautiful sea side Mediterranean town that hosts one of the biggest salsa festivals in the world, with over 5,000 dance participants from across 70 countries. It was a four-day trip planned around the festival.

We would head to our favourite restaurant for breakfast and dinner daily to enjoy a good continental meal with a breathtaking view of the sea and the awe-inspiring old town. Dinner, at 8.30 pm, during late sunset, overlooking the calm waters, was our everyday routine when we were there.

All my trips are generally based around dance and dance festivals, but we did manage to take out some time to roam the streets of the old town around the church. We also made sure to spend time by the sea. It captured me so much that I am planning to visit again next year, for a longer duration, so I can explore the countryside at leisure. Croatia in summer is one of the best places I’ve been to. Rovinj, especially, has the charm of a quaint old European town built around a church and surrounded by the sea.

The festival kept me busy and so, I only had a chance to meet with all the passionate dancers. You wouldn’t be able to tell the locals from the foreigners there! The restaurants and shops are always buzzing and as far as I remember, the locals were extremely friendly and welcoming.

As a dance professional and addict, for me it was a paradise. We would dance through the night till 6 am every day. We went to the legendary pool parties by the sea for two days and some of the dance workshops by the legends. I took a lot of inspiration from there and have added that to the international salsa event I host in Chennai. There couldn’t have been anything more romantic than this opportunity to spend every day with my lady love with a beautiful Mediterranean backdrop!

Normally, when I go for events, I get invited to teach or perform but this is one event, where I felt I went for a dance holiday and took time to learn from legends, and to dance all night, literally. I don’t remember witnessing the night as the sun sets late and we would party till dawn. Another big highlight is the live music of the world’s top Cuban band playing at the city centre on one of the nights, where more than 3000 people had gathered.

If you have Rovinj on your travel plan, end of June and the beginning of July are the festival dates. Do plan six months or more in advance for your stay and travel. It’s so popular that most places get sold out way before the crazy two weeks. Also, there are no direct flights to Rovinj. So, it’s advisable to plan a longer trip to Europe.

I have already booked my festival pass and my stay for next year. My itinerary for the next year is full with Austria, Hungary, Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Croatia in the plan — all for the love of dance!

(As told to Kaavya Pillai)