The revelation of the term just past has been that despite all my cosmopolitan pretensions, I still remain very much a kampung boy at heart.. :) The important thing is to know how and when to code-switch, which I am still learning with every day that passes.

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A late night cab-share home from Union two nights ago led to Eddie broaching a topic that I had been ignorant of thus far. His claim is that the Singapore salsa scene is currently experiencing a decline in the quantity and quality of leads, and that has indirectly resulted in a gradual fading away of the better follows primarily because their favourite leads are no longer down at Union that often. I can see the logic behind that; after all most major studios here hold their own weekly social nights now and I don't see some dancers in Union any more. But still I will tend to question his point of view because I cannot observe the decline in quality personally. The band is playing some amazing music nowadays, a huge improvement from their situation a mere two months ago, and Union is going to undergo a renovation and revamp quite soon - things are definitely looking up in my opinion. The first two Singapore Salsa Festivals have served to boost the public profile of salsa in Singapore, so much so that it probably is no longer seen as a dirty, immoral dance, or as my superior in the Army used to say, 摇屁股的! Nope. Far from that. The raised profile can only work well in bringing in a greater number of novices, and while the dropout rate will remain as high as before, a greater initial number will translate to a greater absolute retention rate. Of course, I may be thinking too optimistically here, but a bit of optimism never hurts, isn't it so? Viva la salsa.. :)