ERIC nijmegen netherlands
- Almost nobody knew about the transfer to come.

SAMANTHA cambridge england
- There were men dancing together like whirling dervishes.

FREDRIK braunschweig germany
- I have been waiting a long time in front of the toilet door waiting for that man to get out!

MELIN instanbul turkey
- I stood in front of the building and asked myself where my home was.

TILLA frankfurt germany
- I met a lot of people I have already met around Europe and I found out that they are all frequent guests.

TOVE lund sweden
- So even if I was impressed by a lot of things I mostly wanted to leave.

HENRY nijmegen netherlands
- My friends had a very good time because they noticed that something happened to me.

STEFAN nijmegen netherlands
- I finally dared to ask one of the 'local heroes'. What an energetic explosion!

MAX dortmund germany
- He welcomed me with my name without having seen me before.

THORSTEN düsseldorf germany
- At this point I wonder if El Corte is a regular dancing school.

SINAN valletta malta
- I felt myself disappointed at the very first impression.

RUTH totnes england
- This is very hands-on peace work, so badly needed in a world full of fighting and disconnection..

GREG seatle usa
- I can't begin to describe the truth of that prediction.

ELISABETH bologna italy
- I survived though, and have
lived to tell the tale.

GUIDO & MY moers germany
- Wir alle suchten dann noch seine Socken (auf denen My saß...)

JO london england
- I had never seen such a beautiful dance floor.

JESSE los angeles usa
- It's like I've came back home to old friends that I haven't met yet.

CHRISTIAN rotterdam netherlands
- Some other tangueras y tangueros immediatly guided me where to store away my belongings - 'regulars' as I later learned.

JOHN totnes england
- The collective excitement was filling the space to bursting point, threatening to build to a lighting strike...

PASCALE lille france
- Et quand ils quittent la piste, c’est dans le silence, dans le recueillement de la danse...

ALEX portland usa
- and I left after the week's dancing was done with the tango-junky's needle still in my arm wanting more.

STELLA berkeley usa
- We had to stand in the cold in our light tango clothes until the doors opened.

NITIN washington usa
- I liked the absence of any sign except the street number, 108: a little frisson of anxiety, is one at the right place?

RENÉ & CHANTAL roosendaal netherlands
- The decision to leave was an easy one;
no, we were not ready for El Corte.

KATIA moscow russia
- I can speak El Corte’s tango-language! Well… may be with some accent :)

 

JO 28 times since 2001

I had heard so much about how fantastic El Corte was that I was intimidated to go for a long while. When I eventually plucked up the courage to go I only wished that I had gone sooner.

I have two vivid memories of my first night at El Corte – Eric’s warm greeting and seeing the dance floor. I had never seen such a beautiful dance floor; every dancer seemed to be dancing with their partner and with the other couples – the whole floor body moved harmoniously and smoothly.

From what I had heard, I couldn’t imagine what El Corte would look like. There was good reason for this – there is nowhere else like it, neither physically nor atmospherically. Everything was so well thought out and there were so many creative and imaginative touches – the place was so obviously Eric! But the atmosphere was Eric too. I could see how much everybody enjoyed being there and sharing one another’s company and tango. I knew that I wanted to be part of what I found.

I felt a little bit on the edge of things that first night, but I knew I would return to El Corte and next time it would be better ……… and it has been. I have returned 3 times since my first visit and I continue to be surprised by what I find there – the new additions, the new faces, the delightful dances, the relaxation. It just keeps getting better and better. There has always been something special to take away and keep my going until next time.

I look forward to then.