THE DANCE THAT BROKE HEARTS

April 24, 2023
by RJ Hamster

Monday, April 24, 2023

In today’s newsletter, we spin and slide through the roots of tango, learn about skyrocketing STD rates, replant our backyard garden … and experience a flaming car wreck.

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Sinuous, sharp, and sexy, the dance crept, one critic said, like “a reptile from the brothel.” Disdained by elites at home, the dance (shown above) captured Paris, and Rudolph Valentino broke hearts with it in America.

Belatedly, Argentina embraced its greatest contribution to world music—the grasping, accordion-laden opera of emotions known as the tango. More than a century from its birth in the slums, tango’s intense interplay of intertwined couples on the dance floor has prospered anew, from the banks of the Rio de la Plata to Berlin’s Spree, from small cafes to TV’s Dancing With the Stars. “It gets in your blood in a quiet way,” says actor Robert Duvall, who did this Nat Geo special on the dance.

How did it begin? What influenced this enduring dance? What can we learn from the mysteries of the tango?

Read the full story here.

Please consider getting our digital report and magazine by subscribing here.

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A smaller accordion with a big punch: The German-made bandoneón, like this 1914 one from Berlin, gives the tango its dramatic, melodic, sometimes sorrowful sound. Read more.

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MICROGRAPH BY SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

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IN THE SPOTLIGHT

PHOTOGRAPH BY WOLFGANG KAEHLER, LIGHTROCKET/GETTY

Back to its roots: Planting native species in your garden has greater effects than boosting curb appeal—you’ll help restore local wildlife, too. (Pictured above, a butterfly lands on a native milkweed flower.)

Need another reason? “Native plants don’t need the same nutrient-rich commercial potting soil as non-native plants, and they grow without herbicides and pesticides,” Nat Geo reports.

START GROWING

PHOTO OF THE DAY

PHOTOGRAPH BY AARON HUEY

Oh no! Photographer and Nat Geo Explorer Aaron Huey was on his second assignment when he crashed his rental vehicle near the Mayan ruins of Calakmul and watched it burn (above), his passport inside the fiery wreck. “I sat on the side of the road for 3 hours,” he writes. He completed the assignment before telling Nat Geo, which paid the tow bill for the charred remains. Huey has completed many more, less incendiary assignments for Nat Geo in the past 15 years.

More of Huey’s work:
Inside the new battle for the American West
Favorite places to photograph

SEE MORE BY HUEY

LAST GLIMPSE

PHOTOGRAPH BY FRANCESCO LASTRUCCI

Chef’s kiss: Looking for a mouth-watering, finely cured, hand crafted Italian meal? We have your city destination: Parma. With its historic streets and perfectly aged meats, look no further for “a city of absolute precision when it comes to food.” (Above, toasted focaccia with prosciutto crudo and melted Parmesan.)

I’M DROOLING

Today’s soundtrack: Zita, Astor Piazzolla

Thanks for reading today’s newsletter! It was curated and edited by Jen Tse, Mallory Benedict, Hannah Farrow, and David Beard. Want to let us know your thoughts? Send away: david.beard@natgeo.com. Happy trails!

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ULTRAS

RJ Hamster

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THE DANCE THAT BROKE HEARTS

THE DANCE THAT BROKE HEARTS

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