Did somebody say Zeimpekiko?

Greek dancing is something that every person needs to experience once, if not 20 times in their lifetime (and I am not talking about some show at Epcot.) Now granted, I have seen my share of some pretty amazing dancing (Jabbawockeez anyone?), but never have I felt so apart of the culture without speaking the language!

Zeimpekiko, or the drunkards dance, is probably the most entertaining you will ever get to watch! The rhythm is 9/4 as to allow an extra beat for the "drunkard" to have an extra beat to stumble around. One person is in the middle dancing on their toes, tapping their hands on the ground, doing kicks over people's heads, and even sliding on the floor for the duration of the song. The rest of the crowd gathers around the person (including you the beginner if you feel so inclined!), kneeling and clapping their hands to the beat. As my friend John says, "It's a chance for a Greek to prove he's a man" (though I saw a few women dancing solo too). Now granted, the music played is that of that of traditional Greek guitar and singers singing about their long lost love, so don't expect any MGMT or "Single Ladies". Finally, its not a true greek dancing place if there aren't any napkins, broken plates, or broken glasses littering the floor.

The other dance that you will see quite often is the Syrto. This is the line dance that goes around in a circle and moves to the right. The pace is quicker and its a slow-quick-quick-slow in a left-right-left sort of fashion. After watching for a while, feel free to join in at the end of the line (the right end is the leader, so join at the back) or if someone invites you in, join there and learn from them. Just don't break the line if not invited to join in at that place if you are not experienced. The good thing is that everyone is always willing to lend a hand to a newbie, and again, don't forget that napkins probably will be thrown (aparently the less wasteful form of plate and glass breaking).

Luckily, dance is an international language so you have no excuse not to join in!

Opa!