December 17, 2007 9:41pm (photo by Jani)

We got some coffee at Starbucks in downtown DC and for about an hour shared with each other our respective experiences promoting the DC flamenco and salsa communities. There aren't too many people who do what we do, so it's always a pleasure to chill out with a fellow arts scene promoter and talk shop. We could've talked all day, but she had a day job to go back to.

Miguelito. December 17, 2007 9:41pm (photo by Jani)

So around noon, I took the metro back to Rosslyn and just as I walked in my apartment, I got a text from another friend I hadn't hung out with in a while, who happens to be a fellow webmaster and web designer extraordinaire. And guess what? Yeah, we met at a Starbucks in Arlington and talked shop for almost an hour. Of course, he had a day job to go back to, ugh, so I stuck around by myself for a bit and finished my second tall pumpkin spice latte, not my usual drink (which is doppio espresso), but I decided to try something new in the spirit of Christmas.

María. December 17, 2007 9:41pm (photo by Jani)

Just as I left Starbucks, I got another text from a dancer friend who was getting off work around 3:30pm. We were meeting up with a mutual MySpace friend at a--guess what?--yes, Starbucks again. This time in Dupont Circle. And yeah, I had pumpkin spice latte for the third time in four hours. So as you can imagine, I was pretty caffeinated by now. Hehe. So for about an hour, we caught up on each other's lives. Then our mutual friend had to go back to work and we decided to follow her to the restaurant where she works, sit in her section and order some pretty decent Italian food. We spent about an hour enjoying our dinner and conversing about flamenco stuff.

December 17, 2007 9:42pm (photo by Jani)

Just so you know, it's not typical for me to meet up with so many friends in one day. But I enjoyed myself just chilling with my friends for most of the day. Considering that I've been performing every single night the past week, it was good to take a break from the guitar.

Miguelito again. December 17, 2007 9:42pm (photo by Jani)

After dinner my dancer friend and I went our separate ways. I ended up going to Pentagon City Mall to squeeze in a little Christmas shopping. I was in the mood for a movie, but decided I'd rather buy a DVD and spend the night in. I was hoping to find SuperBad but I settled for Bourne Ultimatum instead.

María. December 17, 2007 9:47pm (photo by Jani)

I suppose I should say a few words about my gig on Monday night since you're looking at the pics right now. Our singer Gerard Moreno wasn't able to make it to the gig since he had last-minute transportation difficulties (plus we was all the way in North Carolina!). So my dancer for the evening, María, and I performed as scheduled--the show must go on! We had a good time, but we missed you Gerard! It's just not the same without cante.

December 17, 2007 9:47pm (photo by Jani)

NOTE: if you'll check your calendars, you'll see that the next two Mondays fall on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve and Cafe Citron will be closed on those dates. Therefore there will be no Monday flamenco show at Cafe Citron until January 7, 2008.

December 17, 2007 9:48pm (photo by Jani)

It was great to see my dancer friends Joelle and Karina. We hung out at the bar after the show for a little while before heading over to Ozio for rumba by Duende Camarón. And yeah, while they did have day jobs to get up early for the next day, I did manage to convince them to stay until 12:30am. I'm such a corruptor. :-)

Joelle and Karina Valverde. December 17, 2007 10:50pm (photo by Miguelito)

December 17, 2007 11:06pm (photo by Miguelito)

December 17, 2007 11:08pm (photo by Miguelito)

Tuesday morning, I had to get up early (by musician standards) to do a noontime gig at the AARP headquarters in Chinatown where Karina works. I offered to be her accompanist as she performed several flamenco dances at her department's holiday party. Joining her was her fellow Furia Flamenca dancer Sylvia Melecio.

Karina dancing alegrías at AARP. December 18, 2007 12:53pm (photo by Barbranda)

Karina, Sylvia and Miguelito. December 18, 2007 12:58pm (photo by Barbranda)

It's like 3:30am now and I'm still awake. I think I'll lay in bed and see if I start to fall asleep. If not, I'll just dig up some more photos to edit and write another blog. We'll see.

As for tonight (Friday), I'll be performing at Cabanas with dancers Ginette Perea and Shahram. See you there!