Platinum Jaxx

----  "You remember that mysterious, debonaire guy who danced here that one night?"
+++  "Remember him?  I danced with him!!"  
----  "I wonder if he'll ever come back."
+++  "Perhaps"  [She says this with a forlorn empty look.  A tear runs down her cheek.]

:::  In my mind this is how the legends of my visit to the Anchorage Salsa scene will be retold to generation, upon generation  :::

[Ok, I can take literary license, ok?!?!?]

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While in Anchorage in November, I actually dropped by this place multiple times (luckily I didn't make it here on Halloween night, because on the news the next day it was reported someone was shot and killed on the street outside this establishment.  Oh, Alaska.)

Why was I here?  I was here for salsa.  Yes, hot, steamy, & sexy salsa dancing---in ICY Alaska!!  The first night I was here was on their Latin night on a Sunday.  I arrived early, and ended up just hanging out at the bar---because no one was really dancing yet.  I had a local beer and chatted up the bartenders (I overheard the chaos about lack of limes and they answered my question about the Aurora Borealis).  

Needless to say, I did not dance on this night.

BUT, it gets better.

I ended up coming back here yet again.  This time it was a weekend night (Fri, I believe), and this time the salsa party was on the dance floor in the back---this time it was PACKED!

The dance floor is actually pretty small, so it was packed for every good song.  They played quite a bit of salsa, but they also played cumbia, merengue, and of course, bachata.  

I'm a scaredy cat when it comes to asking a female to dance---especially in a new place.  But after some time (probably an hour!), I finally gathered courage.  I asked someone to dance.  "No, no.  Not zis song," she said in a Russian accent.  (Palin wasn't kidding about seeing Russia from her kitchen, cuz you can see Russians even in their salsa clubs here!).  

A few seconds later, the song changed, and she grabbed me on the dancefloor.  It was a good song.

1,2,3  5,6,7  
1,2,3  5,6,7  
1,2,3  5,6,7

Ok, my dancing computer was operational & synced to Alaska time.  I was happily on beat.  The magic began....

....only for a few seconds.  After I started some moves, feelin' the song, and flashing my impeccable smile, the woman abruptly stopped.  She watched me.  She was smiling.  I didn't know what was going on.  Is this an Alaska thing??  I continued, and she tried, but she just watched.  Then she grabbed me and took me off the dance floor.  She took me over to one of her friends.  

"You must dance wiss ziz guy!"  she told her friend.  Her friend was someone who looked like the salsa peacock of the night.  She had mad make up on, super high heels, lines of guys queued to dance with her.

I found the Salsa Godmother of Anchorage.

I talked with her.  Apparently, we'd been to some of the same places in Seattle (Salsa Congress) & in San Francisco.  She was an instructor.  She said to come back and grab her for a salsa.  Or to grab any of the ladies at her booth.

I agreed and walked away.

Needless to say she was busy the whole night, and I didn't get a dance.  I did steal a dance with one of her friends, and this was my favorite dances for the evening.  No awkward pauses, no staring at me---just fun on the dance floor.

I can't wait to come back to Anchorage!  They really DO have a salsa scene!  

I was there.  

I lived it.

They have beer! Congrats! Jeez though she didn't even check to see if there was diarrhea on our table! That's how good our service was. Decent food, bad portions, whatever. Not like I was expecting much.

They charge cover when they dont serve alcohol. Retarded. If your not serving cocktails. No cover!