Zumba helps protect the turtles

Beach Zumba is still going strong on the beach in Nuevo Vallarta. A feisty core group shows up just as the sun is cresting the hills and shining on beautiful Banderas Bay.

Dancing with my Zumba buddies

I've had many newcomers to Zumba showing up the past few weeks, people who have heard about Zumba but have never tried it. It's the best sells pitch that can be made for what we do ---- an amazing view of boats, birds, whales, swimmers, morning sun as they simply move to great music. Make new friends. Smile. And get fit.

What's not to love?

This weekend is a big holiday weekend in Mexico, Dia de la Candelaria or Candlemas, and we have young campers on the beach. Although I had warned them about our early morning Zumba class, it still seemed wildly ironic that a group of us mostly grandmother-aged women were waking up these college-aged campers with a boom box blasting out Juanes and other great Latin songs at o'dark early.

Good morning, Banderas Bay!

One young man ran from the tent into the water, swimming out to catch some body surfing. Between waves we could see him dancing to the music. Aha. Gotcha! Everybody's happy.

This season I've been offering the class for free but collecting donations for the turtle game preserve just down the beach from us. We've seen the baby turtles in the surf after the release from this excellent program, once even in the morning while we were dancing away.

The class is free only advertised by word of mouth and the local Mexican women have been attending and telling their friends, as have local condo owners and some of the cruisers from Paradise Village. So I've been rapidly expanding my vocabulary of commands in Spanish to this lovely bilingual group. My mistakes are pretty hilarious.

Juanes plays at Hard Rock!

Tomorrow night many of us from the class plan to mosey on down the beach to hear the Latin music superstar Juanes play his 'Loud and Unplugged' concert as part of his international tour. Born in Columbia, he's won 19 Latin Grammy awards and has been nominated for this year's Latin Album of the Year at the Grammy's.

About 5,000 people are expected at the beach concert at the new Hard Rock Hotel in Nuevo Vallarta and tickets are about $300 per person if you actually want to sit to hear it.

But we'll be ones on the beach, dancing to La Camisa Negra.....

Beach Zumba: Monday/Wednesday/Fridays at 8 a.m. in front of Bahia del Sol, Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico continues for the month of February. 

Sun, surf, sand, Zumba!