Clay's Dance Studio

First Ever TodosTango Festival in Todos Santos, Mexico, Friday Jan 14-Monday Jan 17, 2011

Todos Santos Tango Festival Evaluations
Todos Santos Tango Festival Results

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Some Background Information

Marilyn Martin and I would like to bring tango to the local Mexican and expat community of Todos Santos. To do so, we need to make it extremely affordable and we need to have some experienced tangueros like yourself show up and provide inspiration. Thus we have created a special weekend of inexpensive tango classes (ranging from absolute beginners to advanced), milongas, tango potluck/receptions and even a "How to Build a Tango Community" seminar. (Click here for schedule.) This is a great opportunity for you to get away from the winter cold and enjoy a few days of hiking, surfing, whale watching, tennis, eating, shopping and relaxing in sunny Mexico, while still getting in one of the most important activities in life--dancing tango.

Village of Todos Santos (Los Angeles Times article)

Todos Santos is a small dusty Mexican village on the Pacific coast side of the Baja California Peninsula. At one time financed by sugar production, beautiful colonial style buildings and homes were constructed, but fell into ruin in the 50's when both sugar prices and the water table dropped. In recent years new agriculture, artists and crafts people have moved into the area and are restoring the town creating beautiful hotels, B&Bs, galleries, gourmet restaurants, quaint Mexican cafes and easy access to whale-watching, bird-watching, surfing, tennis, pristine beaches, fishing, hiking and biking.

Flora del Mar

Owner of the magical/mystical Flora del Mar B&B (just 2 bumpy miles from downtown), Marilyn Martin has two passions--dancing tango and saving stray Mexican dogs! Flora del Mar will be the headquarters for this event with a "Get Acquainted Tango Reception" on Friday and Seminar, Advanced Classes and Closing Reseption on Monday. (All other activities on Sat and Sun will be in town. (Click here for schedule.)

Instructor, DJ, Seminar Leader, Organizer and General Gopher

Your's Truly, Clay Nelson

Schedule, Prices and Registration

All classes are $5 each (or 50 pesos), the Sat Evening Milonga is $10 and the recpetions and seminar are free. (click here for schedule). However, we recommend a full pass to everything for just $40 if you pre-register by Jan 3, 2011. To register, just click on the "Buy Now" button and fill out the form. You can pay by credit card, check, or at the door. Hope to see you there! Click here to see List of Probable Attendees and here to add your name to Probable Attendees Form.

Lodging

Flora Del Mar has a small practice dance floor, pool, tennis court and can house up to 16 people. Marilyn will offer a discount on lodging if you give the code word "Todos Tango".

Numerous other hotels are available in town and can be found at: www.todossantos.cc/accommodations.asp.

Also, the Maria Bonito Hotel in downtown Todos Santos has clean inexpensive rooms with twin beds or a king for approximately 500 pesos/night ($44). They are not on the web and do not have email, but Marilyn (just click on her name) will make the arrangements and work with you individually to help you find appropriate lodging.

Getting There

The airport in La Paz is closer (LAP--about an hour away), but the airport near Cabo San Lucas (SJD--about two hours away) is cheaper, larger and easier to get to. From SJD, you could rent a car, or take a bus. To catch the bus, look for the shuttles lined up outside the terminal which will take you to the local bus terminal. (Just ask almost anyone and they will direct to the shuttle busses). Cost is about 100 pesos or $8. At the bus termianl, book a seat to Todos Santos. (These are nice air conditioned busses, leaving about every hour and cost around 150 pesos or $12). If you are staying at Flora del Mar, Marilyn will come and pick you up at the bus terminal in Todos Santos. Check with Marilyn (redcliffproperties@gmail.com) for more details.

Additional Information You Should Know About

My friend Christina Johnson is also doing a Mexican tango festival called "Tango by the Sea" Jan 2-9, 2011 in a small fishing village called San Francisco not far from Puerto Vallarta. Check out her web site and maybe you'll want to attend two tango festivals in Mexico!
Although Todos Santos has some first rate hotels and restaurants, still, this is Mexico and some other things (like roads, cafes, shops etc) can be just a bit more "rustic" than in the states. E.g., my favorite restaurant, Miguel's, has the best chile rellenos I have ever tasted along with great margaritas, but also has a dirt floor, "quaint" bathrooms and maybe a dog or two wandering around!