Capoeira Class in DC

I decided to take a free intro to capoeira class in DC today. Capoeira is a Brazilian martial art that somewhat resembles dancing. It uses mostly kicks and headbutts, not the most efficient martial art, it focuses more on style and less on dealing damage to the opponent.

It was in a pretty bad neighborhood of DC, where the convenient shop doesn't let you inside the store, it had a bulletproof glass with a small Z shaped hole for handing money and merchandise between the workers and shoppers.

The class was pretty cool, they taught the basic step, called "Ginga", as shown at the clip above. The practicer keeps moving to make himself a moving target, and a kick can come out of the end of any step. The sway back and forth allows a lot of variations of movement, but the basic Ginga step is about staying low, and use the arm of the opposite leg you're leaning on to guard your face. I also learned the basic front roundhouse kick out of a Ginga step, pretty good for one intro session.

The class was great, but the environment was terrible. It was hot in there with no AC. At the end of the class, I literally felt like my eyes were blurry and couldn't hear well, regained myself after grabbing some water and catching my breath in the bathroom. On the way back to my car, I was saved by the guy selling drinks on the side of the street, I bought a Gatorade for $2, and all is well. Great class, but I'm not a big fan of passing out, so I think Capoeira will not be one of my new DC hobbies.