I got a practice with Sarah in on Wednesday in place of Cultural Activities -
the only one of the week. We planned to try the fast choreography from my
lesson with Vincenzo and Katja, but there wasn't a lot to do because it worked
first time! Good follow. The only other people sharing the Palladium Ballroom
tent with us were Skye and Frida.

On Thursday I deliberately skipped Dawn Hampton's lecture at 2pm and
accidentally slept through the next lesson at 3:20pm too. That was our only
lesson with Frederick and Mimi. Apparently they are improbably beautiful but
not very good teachers, so I was lucky.

Thursday night was really good. We started with the battle of the bands at 8pm.
This is a contest between the students on the Swing Orchestra track, which
happens this week. They were utterly rubbish, unfortunately, so Tom, Jenna and
I started drinking instead. Hence or otherwise the meeting was good (but not,
as Tom kept reminding me, as good as the day before which apparently was the
best ever - apparently there was a Kung Fu movie featuring Chester followed by
a moving falsetto rendition of "I will always love you" sung to Leonard) and
then we moved to "the pub", being Heaven's kitchen, where a band formed largely
of teachers was playing. Andy Reed turns out to be a really good bass player.

The show was stolen by Joseph from Cirque du Soleil who humbly turned up with
one of the practice boards from the school area and asked "Mind if I join in?".
He placed it in front of the band and started tap dancing on it. He was easily
loud enough to be the rhythm section of the band, which is how he behaved, and
he was clearly the tightest member of the band rhythmically. When the time came
for his solo he let rip. We calculated he was tapping at one point at about
1440bpm: that's 24Hz. There is already a video of it on YouTube. After two
songs he equally humbly picked up his board and returned it.

By the time the cabaret started at midnight we were quite drunk. It was great
and I've completely forgotten it. Then we danced, drank some more, and danced
again, without killing anybody. Result.

Three great lessons on Friday (Andy and stand-in Augustina; Kevin and Jo; Hasse
and Marie) were followed by the Competition and Show show in the Savoy
Ballroom, in which each couple performed a routine of about 90 seconds that
they had choreographed themselves. It was quite interesting. Although it was
billed as a show, and had a large audience, the teachers treated it as a
lesson, and it is a mixed level class, so we got to see some behind-the-scenes
stuff.

The theme of the Friday party was "Slumber Party" which was perfectly chosen
given that the camp was now in the process of being taken apart. Everybody
turned up in pyjamas and with the bedsheets that they no longer needed, and the
Folkets Hus was decorated largely with bits and pieces scavenged from the bits
of general accommodation that had already been dismantled. A ring of bunk beds
were placed around the dance barn, which reduced the space available, but also
the number of people, as many were sleeping or snuggling even as the music
blared. Really quite a strange sight. Our house (Corrin, Clare, Leonie,
Stephen, Tom and I - only Ben was missing) arrived rather late having tried to
drink the fridge dry in preparation for leaving. We promptly lost Tom to a top
bunk for several hours.

The best costume I saw was a guy who had somehow attached a mattress to his
back, complete with sheets and pillows, so that it looked like he was lying in
bed. It was a double mattress, so whenever he brought his partner into closed
position it looked like she was also in the bed. He was far too large for the
crowded dancefloor and couldn't see behind himself but it really didn't matter
because he was so well padded.

This was a good week, especially in terms of learning. I have been here long
enough that I am no longer battling with social skills or sleep deprivation or
loneliness or unfamiliar dancing styles, and I was able to focus properly. The
follows in class were good. The teaching was good. I worked hard. I have had
some great social dances. I got a couple of compliments from people watching,
and one of my classmates remarked on how much I had improved. I am by no means
remarkable in this crowd, but it is a remarkable crowd, and if I am beginning
to stand out then I am doing very well. I have not yet found my limit. How far
can I go?

And now all of my house but me have left, most of them on the 11am Shuttle bus
to Arlanda. I am sitting/sleeping in the bar formerly known as Bedlam, which no
longer serves food at all times of day, and the camp is gradually disappearing.
There are bare patches of yellow and white grass where the tents and practice
boards used to be. Whole buildings are simply not there any more. They are
wheeling out a freezer as I type. Even the music has stopped. It's quite sad
really, but it is helping me to leave.