Latin-American music and Afro-Caribbean dances like Merengue, Bachata, and Salsa have attracted many enthusiastic followers during the last few years in Europe and North America. The music and its dances express the positive attitude of the people towards life, towards their culture, their vitality, and their joy in life.
Dominicans love to dance. Music is always around them, if it is at home, on the bus, in the little colmado (food store) near-by, or on the street.
Of all the rhythms that enriched the cultural heritage of the Dominicans, the Merengue is the most collective expression of the people’s soul. As a popular musical form, it is very dynamic and varies from one generation to the next.
This programme is for all those who want to discover the Dominican attitude towards life not only through the foreign language but also through the people’s dances and music. In the mornings, the students tackle Spanish vocabularies, and in the afternoons, native dance instructors teach them the steps and passionate body language of the “Latin movement“.

The language course consists of twenty 45-minute lessons per week (4 lessons/day), in mini-groups of maximum 7 participants. Classes are usually from Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am till 12:30 pm

Dance classes consist of three private 60-minute hours per week in Carabete.
You will dance Merengue, Bachata, or Salsa Dominican style; other Salsa styles may be offered as well.

Dance classes usually take place at the upper open terrace of the beach restaurant and night club with its stunning beach and ocean view.

You can always enter a course, no matter which dancing level you have.

Salsa:
Salsa is similar to Mambo in that both have a pattern of six steps danced over eight counts of music. The dances share many of the same moves. In Salsa, turns have become an important feature, so the overall look and feel are quite different form those of Mambo. Mambo moves generally forward and backward, whereas, Salsa has more of a side to side feel.

Bachata:
Bachata is a form of music and dance that originated in the countryside and rural marginal neighborhoods of the Dominican Republic. Its subjects are usually romantic; especially prevalent are tales of heartbreak and sadness.

Merengue:
Merengue is a type of lively, joyful dance that comes from the Dominican Republic, characterized by a sliding step and by far the easiest to learn!