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Salsamania Updates
New season starts on Feb 2007 - Currently in Bootcamp
Photos Salsamania Season 2006
"I was pirouetting and pirouetting and FELL from a concrete platform about 3 feet tall..."
I know, I was already dancing in my mother's belly before I was born. I took some piano lessons when I was 5, but was never able to stand the "sitting in one spot" more than 15 minutes. I remember doing pirouettes near a river where I used to live, pretending "Swan lake". I was pirouetting and pirouetting and FELL from a concrete platform about 3 feet tall. I hit and cut my knees pretty bad and started bleeding A LOT. I scared my mom but it convinced her to let me start learning ballet by the time I was 6 years old. The pain was all worth it.
Mayu and Dance
6 - 14 yrs old: Classical Ballet at Hiraki Ballet School
I've learned all the basics of the ballet and beauty of dancing here. My body never forgets the basics, and it is the hardest to do the simplest moves.
My love for ballet started here and I really love ballet. I strongly believe that ballet is the most sophisticated art of all.
High School: Jazz and Hip Hop
After I got into a high school, I started taking bunch of dance classes from different dance school/community centers. I was already taking some Jazz lessons when I was in junior high, but in high school it was more of 'cool' dances like you see in MTV. I had lots of fun, did some performances here and there, made some good friends. Oh and there was "HOT" dance teacher, I liked him cuz he was just so cool, but nothing happened:P
College: Ballet, Jazz, Hip-Hop, B-boying
I moved to the states to start my college, and registered in some dance courses every semester/quarter offered at the DVC and the UCSD. There were some good classes, including ballet, jazz, hip-hop and b-boying (girling). Haha, the B-boying class was so tough, I got bruised ALL OVER my body every time. I love to go back for that.
Meeting with Salsa "When I stepped in to the floor, it was EYE OPENING..."
In my latin dance class at Rimac in UCSD, I met a Japanese girl named Maki. She was an exchange student from Osaka and was in love for salsa dancing. I was never interested in partner dancing, and I didn't even consider it as real dancing. ( Can you believe it?) One night, I tagged along with her to check out a famous salsa tranpetter, Jimmy Bosh, at UCSD. Of course I had no idea who he was. When I stepped in to the floor, it was EYE OPENING... Everybody was dancing. I mean really dancing, not moving and grinding as you see in lame hip-hop clubs. I felt like I got hit in my head and ever since then I'm addicted to Salsa.
I danced about 5+ days a week to get better at salsa immediately, and my body was starving to absorb everything out there. I started dancing with Edgar Mendez and Teresa Zomolano who were former members of Los Rumberos, the legendary salsa 
dance team in LA. After learning the basics and some neck drops, I wanted to move on to more professional team, so I joined Majesty in Motion with David Stein in San Diego. Luckily, I had chances to dance with David for New Year Salsa bash in Palm Springs, and did other big perofrmances in LA, and at the LA Annual West Coast Salsa Congress of course.
Moving on to the Salsamania, I learned not only salasamania-style salsa but also about the cuban music, such as rhythm with clave and tumbao. After so many brutal and exciting trainings (smile), I moved up from the training team to the semi-pro, Son de Mania, and performed at several bay area clubs in Berkeley, SF and SJ, and also at the SF Salsa Congress 2005.
I've been a salsaholic about 6 years. I've taught salsa in different locations, such as Salsa Caribe in Roppongi, Japan, for partnering and styling. In Taiwan, I helped teaching student salsa club in Shida Univ., also had group and private lessons for ladies styling and shines.
Currently I'm with Salsamania and go to practices in Alameda, CA:)