South Fest 2019 on Friday

The South Fest 2019 was held over the past weekend in Songkhla. Because I work Saturday and Sunday I couldn't attend. But Joshua and I made it there on Friday. There was dancing by Maura Morales as she performed a fusion of contemporary and Manora alongside Thai dance students and Manat Nattapong. There was a music performance by Marisol Limon. And we arrived to catch the poetry readings of Rossanee Nurfarida and Dan Owen.

Joshua and I met this uncle as we ate lunch before going to Songkhla.

And we ended the night by joining the fun swing workshop put on by a collective of swing dancers living in Songkhla. I had never learned any swing before and I found it to be very enjoyable. After a few minutes and many attempts at catching the rhythm, it becomes rather easy to do the basic steps they taught us. Another challenging part was learning to dance with a partner. I would be interested in continuing with the swing dance if it were closer to where I live.

This cat was listening to the poetry too.

Manat Nattapong and the Manora team.

Manat and Maura

This fusion performance remained exciting throughout also thanks to the music of Michio Woirgardt and the percussion team.

A comprehensive fusion of contemporary and traditional Thai dancing.

The Swing Dance class activated the dancefloor first.

Then they invited us and we made a circle. And this cat displayed his calm over the situation. 

And finally we just ended it with a dance party.

Joshua and I were willing to hitchhike back to Hatyai but some nice English professors at the university guided us through the city to a taxi stand where we shared a ride back with a young Thai couple. One of the professors gave Joshua some much needed help for his own journey. The Thai couple were very curious and we had a good chat the whole ride back. This was the first year of the South Fest and I hope I can visit on more days next year.