C.A.P.O.E.I.R.A...

Today at class we learned the basic movements in the Brazilian martial art of Capoeira. In the first part of the class our instructor made us stretch and warm up, and since its extremely hot and humid, it actually made us hot other than warm.
When we actually started the martial art part of the class we learned the Ginga, which is a basic movement that any person who is in Capoeira has to do because in this form of martial arts, there is no set position, the two opponents have to constantly move.
After that part, we learned the Rolê which is basically a person starting with both hands and feet on the ground and supporting their body with out using their back end, and the person simply just flips over and ends where they began from.
After we mastered the first two we learned Ponteira which is a simple kick of from the Ginga.
Then we learned Martelo which is more complicated than the Ponteira, it requires the person to start in Ginga and then do a sidekick. This form of kicking requires a lot of balance.
Later on we learned Au, which is just a simple cartwheel but in Capoeira it is a powerful move to learn.
In the second half of the class we sparred in a fifteen foot diameter circle amongst ourselves and so did our instructors to show us their specialties which was very exhilarating.
Afterwards we learned the instruments of Capoeira which are all African of origin.
The berimbau is a wooden bow with a wire going from end to end, with a dried hollow gourd at the bottom. It is played by the musician with the berimbau facing away from him and the gourd on his stomach. The musician strikes the wire with a small stick or baqueta and in one hand, the instrument is balanced by the pinkie finger and a small stone is in the same hand that is placed between the thumb and pointer finger which is place on the back part of the piece of wire. With the amount of strikes and ferocity to the wire and if the rock is on the wire and the size of the gourd and if the gourd is on the musicians stomach determines the sound the instrument makes.
There is also the atabaque which is just a simple standing up drum, the pandeiro which is a tambourine and the A-Go-Go which is two differently sized metal bells that are together that is simply stuck by a wooden stick.
And for the finale we all did some salsa amongst each other.