This evening, my niece and I went to do some 广场舞.

广场舞, or “plaza dance”, is very popular in China. Plaza dance is a direct translation from 广场舞. It pretty much reflects its original meaning: dancing on the plaza. Check out this YouTube video to see it in action!

How does it work? In a morning or evening, many aunties, grannies or whoever love to take dances as an exercise, gather together on a plaza and dance. The dance leaders bring a few stereos and play loud songs so that everyone in the group can hear. The songs usually have very strong rhythms so that it’s easy to follow.

These dancers usually come from communities close to each other. It’s a great opportunity to exercise in groups and get to know some new friends.

The downside is that their music is normally really loud. When it’s close to school exam days, it can affect students who are preparing for them.In recent years, dancers pay more attention to this and get better at not bothering these student neighbors.

I heard that some Chinese grannies have brought “plaza dance” to New York. As far as I heard from the news, people in the United States didn’t appreciate it, thinking it’s too loud and funny to have so many people dancing together. Oh well :)