Keeping Up With The De Oliveiras: Tempo Latino

One of my friends from the orchestra is from further inland, in the Gers department. When she was growing up, she and her family would often go to the Tempo Latino festival in Vic Fezensac, and since the festival started on her birthday this year, she bought some tickets and asked the group of us if any of us were interested in going with her on opening night. I was more than excited about going, and not only because Tempo Latino is the oldest Salsa and Afro-Latino music festival in France and the second biggest in Europe.

We got there quite early - it takes just over 2 hours to drive there from Biscarrosse, but since the festival is so popular and we weren't sure we would be able to get a good parking space if we got there too late - so we spent a bit of time wandering through the town and admiring the night market before grabbing a bite to eat and listening to some of the peformers in the small street concert venues. Unfortunately for me I got stung by a hornet on the top of my head on the way there so I only started to enjoy the music after the drugs kicked in and my head stopped throbbing!

Some of the cool buildings in Vic

Entrance to the arena where the concerts take place

Spectators in one of the street venues

Dinner! (and empty beer cups...)

This year's opening act was Ernesto "Tito" Puentes (link only in French), a Cuban trumpet player, who was also this year's sponsor. Angel Yos y La Mecanica Loca opened for him, and though they were quite good, I adored Tito's afro-cuban music and stage presence. He invited a special guest onto stage with him - Ibrahim Maalouf, a French trumpet player - who blew us away, so much so that Laure and I went to see him again in September when he came to Bordeaux. The atmosphere at the concerts was amazing, and it was totally worth being stung in the head.