In November, I had one of the most fun photography assignments I ever had since I started shooting.

The Salsa Cruise involved people, it involved a lot of females (definitely), and it involved a lot of body movement. None of which I was too interested in initially, so as I told many people, I ventured into it purely as a photographer. According to TimLow, he was looking for someone who was good at capturing emotions.

I think that maybe I should have warned him beforehand that the emotion that I capture the most was that of MY OWN. I don’t think he would’ve complained though. Camwhoring, after all, is an art ma *crazy laugh*

So, after Day #1 of the Salsa Cruise show at Singapore, came the most exciting part of the journey.

Jordan Frisbee of Jordan & Tatiana.

Kadu Pires & Larissa from Brazil.

It was sail-off day on the Legend of the Seas! Ain’t it grand?

I would have looooved to get a shot while on the pier standing next to the ship for a typical China-man shot but they simply wouldn’t let me get off the boarding passageway. What’s wrong with these security guards? So I could only take a photo of the tugboat instead. Damn.

And this is what you’d see on board. Feast your eyes, people…..

Actually, this is what you get if you board this ship as a regular cruise member.

But what you’re gona see next is what brought the whole thing to life. The Salsa part of the Cruise. Where over 300 guests from all over the world gathered…they came from different origins, practised different cultures, ate different food, but they all spoke one language : Dance.

Honestly, it all came as a shock to me. Here I was, standing with a camera, watching couples who barely knew each other, grinding each others bonbon dancing to music that I can only describe as songs that you hear in the movies. Like the very South American type, eg when James Bond visits Morocco.

I shot and shot like Rambo with an M-16 machinegun. And the more I shot, the happier the faces I got.

This artist Magna Gopal was originally also very happy, until I took such a LOW shot that she thought I was doing an upskirt. Oops..too artistic maybe.

Damn happy right these people! While wondering why…I put some facts together.

I don’t Salsa / Ballroom dance, but I do club. That’s technically dancing right? So because I do not smile as happily as these Salsa people while clubbing, I did some thinking and made this table to see a comparison between Salsa and Clubbing.

And get this. A regular Friday night Salsa party in KL costs me RM10 (including a Coke / mineral water). A regular Friday night Clubbing session costs me RM60 at least (assuming I don’t dun run into road blocks that I need to bribe).

Group shot after dinner aboard the ship

Tony Lara & Jaime Jesus

Ulysses McLaren and Lidia McMahon

The directors of the cruise were, not surprisingly, awesome people themselves.

TimLow, Audrey, James, Tamie.

Even though I was on board as a photographer, I was allowed to join the dance workshops, as long as I had done my share of shooting.

AT THIS POINT I TENSION LOR.

Part of me wanted to try. And part of me knew that if I did, I would look completely like a fool. And sure enough, I did, when I joined the Bachata workshop under Tony and Daniella.

Had I simply partnered with anyone, it wouldn’t be so bad. But guess who dragged me out to dance with.

It’s Zher from 8TV. And it was caught on tape also! *faints*

The only real consolation was that she was a noob like me. So it was a potato dancing with a potato, and that was still OK. Hehe. The best part is, no one laughed. So FAIL on the dancefloor is allowed! *yes*

The incredible Lidia McMahon that exists only in guys’ wildest dreams.

Salsa, Bachata and Zouk are considered street dances, and are the only dance (as far as I know) that can be brought to parties in clubs. You can’t do that with dances like Tango, Rhumba, Ballroom etc. Salsa is a social dance; a universal language that brings people together.

I must admit that after all these, I found myself very drawn in, and wanted to get involved if I could.

So I’ll share with you on how YOU can get right in. I got this invite from TimLow a few day ago, that I wanna share with y’all:

If you think that you dance like Barney, then this event will be perfect for you. It caters for newbies and experienced dancers alike. Organized by the same people who pulled off the successful Salsa Cruise 2009.

There’s food, dance workshops, games, performances, holidays, up for grabs. For free. And if you’re worried that you don’t know people there, that’s what I’m there for. I’ll make sure you get acquainted in no time

Once again, here’s details for ya:

Date : 30th January 2010

Time : 12:00pm to 6:00pm

Venue : Kuala Lumpur Dancers Association (KLDA)

Level 2, Indoor Sport Complex (near Hotel Grand Olympic / behind Stadium Negara)
Wisma OCM
Jalan Hang Jebat
50150 Kuala Lumpur

We’ll be waiting for you Join the revolution….the Salsa revolution!

Cheers!
EVo

 

It’s December everyone!

 

Needless to say, and like everybody else, it’s my favorite month of the year. Christmas, holidays, weather gets cooler, bonus, and of course, annual leave.

 

 

Except for me who used up probably my 2009, 2010 and 2011 annual leave for the past few months travelling like a nomad. I’ve been away so long that I kinda forgot how blogger events were like. Whatever Nike Run la, All American Rejects concert la, Fashion parties la, movie screenings la etc. Suma sudah hilang.

 

When I was back a few weeks ago @reneetay said ‘I spend more time in a plane than I do on my bed’. She’s right, except that it wasn’t just a plane that I spent my time in….it was a cruise ship instead, the Legend of the Seas.

 

 

 

Salsa Cruise Asia was too awesome to be described in just words.

 

So let’s see some pics ok?

 

 

Eh, sorry supposed to be bus picture. Ah, here. The bus! A whole solid 6 hours from 1U bus station to Singapore.

 

I was the first photographer to move with the crew down to the hotel, and being labelled as the ‘Official Photographer’ (one of) for Salsa Cruise Asia, memang kembang sikit lah.

 

It didn’t take long for few of the international artists to notice me with the big-ass camera, and within 10 seconds, I was given a chance to do what I loved the most:

 

CAM HO!

 

Score one with sexy Lidia Mcmahon of Australia!

 

Lidia and Ulysses were definitely one of the favorites among the cruise goers. Accommodating, great dancers with always a smile on their faces. Awesome people. The coolest thing about Ulysses is that he’s a 6’4” Electrical Engineer, with a body that almost made me drool. Almost.

 

 

 

The Ritz-Carlton is a 6-star hotel with classy rooms and classy service to match.

 

 

The only trouble was that I’ve been staying in 2 to 3 stars hotels too often while I’m travelling that I have no idea how to compare 4 or 5 or 6 star hotels. You can tell me this is a 10 star hotel and I WILL believe you. Me village boy haha. I just know that I like the bathroom a lot.

 

 

If you have enough alcohol in your blood and have the balls to bathe in this bath tub, there is the option of leaving the blinds wide open to display your ding-dongs for the passers-by below to check out. I’ve checked, and it IS possible to see from outside.

Maybe this special feature is what makes a 6-star hotel, a 6-star hotel. I don’t know.

 

Crew Makan time at Bao Jin Tian at Marina Square! This restaurant’s got a Bao in its name, but I didn’t see many Baos around. Mostly Hong Kong styled dishes.

 

 

The first night was just crew and artists. Guests were to arrive only on the second day for the performance in the grand ballroom. The best part about being the photographer is that you get to do what you like doing best : Shoot. And it don’t even feel like work at all yo! Best!

 

 

The crew themselves were a young (young by my definition is below 35 years) and energetic (energetic by my definition means sleeping just 3 hours a day) bunch of people. Really good to work with. I think being Mr Hensem Photographer helped to improve communication across as well xD

 

DJ Steiner, Angela, Tamie, Audrey, Vanessa, Shu Shan, Pauline and Jason. Awesome people. You can see here who’s the person older than 30. Buahahhaa.

 

This is Tim, one of Salsa Cruise’s directors, posing with Jordan and Tatiana, who:

 

…Specializing in West Coast Swing, Jordan Frisbee & Tatiana Mollmann have been a successful partnership for five years. They are the 2000, 2001, & 2004 US Open Champions, 2-Time NASDE Champions, Grand National Champions, and have won every Classic event in 2004 & 2005. At 2004 UCWDC World’s event they were given the Star Award for the Couple with the Most Impact on Swing. – http://www.sunnysidedancecamp.org/en/node/21

Damn good dancers. Inspiring!

 

Here’s a preview of what happened the next day…

 

 

 

And tomorrow Psychkin and I will be going for my first blogger event in MONTHS:

Oh it’s been a while. Can’t wait to reconnect with everyone else! I’ll be a noob blogger again…LOL!

 

Also I wana give my very very very x 1000 best congratulations to Andrew and @EveYeo who had their wedding dinner last night at Sunway Hotel Ballroom.

 

And guess what? Love grew for this couple during salsa classes. Not bad eh?

 

P.S you both have to start your night engines. Fast. Haha.

 

Cheers!
EVo

 

I’ve never, Ever packed so much stuff for a 1 week trip before.

 

 

Only after I found out that it was ‘strongly encouraged’ that I comply to the Salsa Cruise Themed Nights, when I scrambled to assemble the most daring, blazing, challenging sets of costumes to follow these themes:

 

1.  23rd : ALL WHITE NIGHT

2.  24th : GLOW PURPLE NIGHT (OMG)

3.  25th : CELEBRITY NIGHT

4.  26th : FORMAL NIGHT

 

With the exception of the themes on 23rd and 26th, I came to a near panic when I had to think of what to wear for GLOW PURPLE.

 

Did I have to find a PURPLE Barney suit and hang some GLOWING Xmas lights around myself?

 

I personally wouldn’t mind, but I wouldn’t be able to see what the heck I’m snapping at while wearing the big purple head.

 

And for CELEBRITY NIGHT, the first person that came to my mind was Michael Jackson, but I thought against it. Firstly, he’s a dead dude and I don’t think it’s that all great to impersonate a corpse.

 

Secondly, I need both my hands to hold the camera, so I can’t afford to be grabbing my crotch all the time. Or pointing to my nipple.

 

 

See la. Dressing up is more hard work than shooting itself. Aih.

 

Anyhow, I shall do my best. Be sure to follow me on Twitter here as I will be twitting whenever there’s reception on board the ship!

 

Also shooting with me are Dwayne Foong and Bryan Lyt. I’m so excited I can’t sleep. Tomorrow the bus will leave 1U bus station at 10am, and I’ll be going down with 10-15 others to Singapore, where we’ll put up the night at Ritz Carlton.

 

 

I sure hope that they allow purple dinosaurs to check in.

 

Cheers!
EVo