NYE- Berkeley Style

First of all, happy new years to all and here's to a blessed, safe and fun 2010.

Being in the bay area for new years, meant that Lex and I had to search for something local and relatively cheap to do for the evening. Every other year (for the last 6 years) we have spent new years with the Shubin family (relatives of my grandma) in a snowed-in venue in Idaho. So for lex and me, our only other New Years where we were old enough to go somewhere fun enough sans parents was two years ago when we found a bizarre pirate party in the city playing a variety of mash-ups to popular songs. We had a blast- dancing like crazy.

Well one up on the pirate party was what I thought would be a ballroom social dance scene. It was, to an extent... I think the photos will explain more than I can. Suffice to say that we ended up at the I house on Berkeley campus, and were able to convince the parents to come. The ages ranged from infancy to people in their 60s. Average age around 35ish. Although we were told by the website that "formal attire" was optional...we had no idea what kind of "formal" they meant until we arrived. Instead of ringing in 2010, we were reliving the 1850s.



The ballroom was large, with a live band playing a variety of waltzes, polkas, and marches. The dance schedule was posted on the walls. Gentlemen, in coat tails and top hats and even a few gloves, escorted ladies on and off the dance floor. Notice quite a few ladies in hoop-skirts and corsets. Honestly, I was totally jealous. Although I love my new skirt, it did not match up to these incredible dresses.



Lex and I had no difficulty dancing, as we were asked to dance often. It was fun to glide across the floor on the fast waltzes and hop and skip like a child on the polkas and sing along as the band played tunes from the Sound of Music.