Retired from the milonga

There was a time when there were many excellent dancers in the milongas.  The milongueros were going to dance regularly in the afternoon and evening and at night.  The foreign population was in the minority at most milongas. 

The balance has been shifting over the past several years.  The economic situation and the realities of aging have changed the demographics from an Argentine majority to a foreign one in many milongas.  Many older porteños aren’t able to dance as often as they would like to for two main reasons:  the expense of going to a milonga and declining health.  The entradas have  increased to a point that many are unable to afford to dance more than once a week.  The milongueros are disappearing from the milongas because they are aging and dealing with health problems.  Many women say they are tired and no longer interested in dancing after so many years.  That’s unfortunate, but it is the reality of social dancing in Buenos Aires. 

I was on my way to a tango talk at Esquina Osvaldo Pugliese one Saturday afternoon when I decided to stop and see Hector Delgado, a milonguero who works as cashier at an ice cream shop at the corner of Boedo and Independencia.  The years seem to have caught up with him.  He has lost interest in going to the milongas after some sixty years.  Hector at 79 continues to work four hours a day at Leoyak where he has been employed for more than forty years.  He said that he won’t retire from his part-time job, because, as he puts it, “what would I do at home all day?  I get to talk with people in the neighborhood.”  Retirement from work isn’t an issue; but retirement from the milonga means another milonguero has left the milongas.  I know that in his heart he is still married to the milonga.

Update 12/8/09:  Hector isn’t working now.  He received the news that he had cancer in his throat and underwent surgery in November.  He is recuperating at home, unable to speak.  Once he recovers, he has to deal with another serious health issue.  Hector has finally had to retire from his job.

Tags: tango