Mamma Mia

Posh Life is speeding along! The workers have been working hard and things are coming together. The rate at which things are getting done HAS picked up, when I look back to 3 weeks ago and arriving here. I am glad today is Friday, as this means I can start working on getting apartment 2C more inhabitable.

Last night we got a fun night on the town. We went to the Chittagong Club for "Mamma Mia." Now, I have never seen this musical, but I know of it. And of course I know Abba. We all knew going into it that it could be mediocre, scary, or just plan terrible. In the end, we were delighted.

Walking into the big room with tulle dripping from every inch was like returning to high school prom. It was pretty--we just all prayed that nobody came anywhere near the decorations with a lit cigarette. It took a while for the night to get started--but that's normal. The show wasn't really a musical--it was just two good singers and a good band singing Abba songs. In the beginning there were some interspersed recorded plot explanations, but about half-way through those stopped. I have no idea if it followed the original plot, but it was fun all the same.

In the middle of the show, our friend Jill in Admissions was pulled up on stage to assist with "Dancing Queen." Zelda, Michelle's daughter, headed up to help her out and they had a rockin' time. Our table had fun cheering them on and dancing in our chairs. After the dancing, Jill had well-wishers stopping by the table to deposit bottles of wine, as well as 40-year-old men asking her to dance. I tried to get her autograph, but she was too busy dealing with fans.

After dinner (around 10:30 pm, I think) we were treated to some dancing music. We couldn't believe it! The teachers (who have been here almost 16 + months) said they have NEVER had this happen in Chittagong. We hit the dance floor en masse and got some good exercise. Now, when I say "hit the dance floor," I mean it in both a literal and figurative way. The dance floor (a space marked off by tule taped to the tile floor) was covered in powder of some sort. I have still not determined what the purpose of this was. At first I thought it was so if you took your shoes off to dance, it would be to prevent foot odor or any sort of transmission of foot disease. But I noticed that nobody took their shoes off. So the only purpose of the powder was to discourage people from dancing--it didn't work--and to endanger the lives of both young and old. A few people wiped out once, and after that moved out of the powdered square to dance, or recognized their bodies limitations and took it easy while breaking it down.

The band finished with "Thriller" (I was so happy) and then the dj came on with what appeared to be rave music from the 1990's. Either way, our ears were pounding and we were shouting to hear each other when we left at midnight. I'm still trying to recover my equilibrium and hearing this morning.