Sunday morning, I went to meet friends at Las Mariposas, a sprawling inn with gorgeous grounds by the Oaxaca Lending Library (approx. $50/night). Crossing Llano Park to get to the hotel, I came across a Zumba class. They were dancing to “Rock Around the Clock.”
What I noticed most was how passersby couldn’t resist smiling at this spectacle and the enthusiasm with which the participants exercised. As my friends and I crossed the park, they were playing more traditional Zumba tunes, but the spectators were still beaming as they watched this show.
A man in the back of the pack struggled to keep pace. Still, he had fun. A tiny girl waiting for her mother by the fountain could not be contained. Though she was sitting, her legs were kicking to the music. After taking a few fast photos, I even swayed to the joyfulness of it all, forgetting for a moment my clumsiness, that I can hardly do water aerobics.