I'm in love. This was (in almost every way) the best week of my trip so far. The high quality (and quantity!) of dancing and music and food and swimming and old friends and new ones - yep, it was lovely. I'm going to try to find a way to be here next summer for longer, and maybe even find a way to be "on staff". Towards that end, I'm going back for a weekend of "closing" chores in September.

The dance organization is Country Dance and Song Society and the location is managed by Pinewoods Camp, Inc. so it's a little hard sometimes to know who to thank for what - but it was all wonderful.

To start with the physical space which I did manage to photograph a bit:

• well-wooded slightly hilly land, with one large lake and one small one (that I never found time to visit);
• beautiful outdoor dance halls (but the floors were a bit of a problem: I had to modify my style a bit to keep from twisting ankles or knees);
• really nice dining hall without walls - which was nice even when it did rain;
• great healthy food, and a nice way to serve it (family style - much more efficient and friendlier than buffet style);
• well-spaced cabins with convenient-enough bathroom and shower houses;
• nicely laid paths - but little lighting, which was fine once you got used to carrying a flashlight.

But the people matter too, maybe more. I didn't get a lot of photos of folks, since I was too busy being with them, but here are a few. And here's an embarrassing video clip that John A. made from the dock as four of us did some contra dancing on the raft. Keep in mind that it was tethered in one spot: the middle, making for some real stability problems!

And the music and callers are critical and were wonderful, but I have no photos at all of them. Callers included Lisa Greenleaf, Carol Ormond and Sue Rosen, but there were many others among the dancers and a class full of good ones getting better. Bands included Notorious and the Canote Brothers, along with Peter Siegel, Lise Brown and George Wilson. And of course there were informal music sessions all over the place, all day and much of the night. One evening I was walking to the big evening dance and came across a cabin, barely visible through the woods, with folks singing some of the prettiest - no, actually, it was hauntingly beautiful - music that I've ever heard. It stopped me in my tracks - for awhile :)

And the program is important. There were lots of classes during the day: dance, singing, playing, calling. I focused on contra dancing but also learned some English (and loved it!), a little swing (which was way fun) and had another hit at learning the Hambo. Carol did some really interesting squares - partly by putting together known moves, but partly by teaching some of the fancy figures, like Ferris Wheel.

My cabin-mate and old TCD friend Debbie was more adventuresome (and has better knees :) She took Cape Breton step dancing, and I got some good photos of their performance.

Well, that doesn't really capture the magic of the week, but maybe that's part of the magic: you have to be there to get it.