Tanya Beardsley’s face and Zumba dance moves may be familiar to teenagers and those who play Wii, Xbox and PS3 or those who do the Zumba home-fitness DVD series. The DVD stars Alberto “Beto” Perez, the creator of Zumba, as well as Gina Grant and Beardsley and is what launched the two women to fame. But it's in the flesh and especially when dancing that Beardsley’s magnetic, vivacious personality shines through.
Zumba is a fun Latin-inspired dance fitness program that feels more like a party than a workout. According to the official
Zumba website, 12 million people take weekly Zumba classes in over 125 countries.
Beardsley visited Israel recently with the Israeli Zumba Association and performed in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Jerusalem. One of the highlights of the trip was dancing together with 600 women, who bought tickets to the show, in a large sports hall in picturesque Ein Kerem. “Zumba in Jerusalem was pretty powerful,” said Beardsley.
Beardsley travelled with the
itraveljerusalem.com team and the Tourism Ministry to all quarters of the
Old City as well as to the Dead Sea. In the video, Beardsley acts as a tour guide of Jerusalem as she wanders through the Old City’s Cardo, Via Dolorosa and the Holy Sepulcher before bathing in the mud in the Dead Sea. She is even seen rhythmically riding a camel “Zumba-style” in the Judean desert.
In the second video, Beardsley does her Zumba moves to El Vacilon at a number of beautiful locations in Israel such as the Tower of David, the Dead Sea and Mamilla Boulevard as well as performing Aqua Zumba, the Zumba “pool party," at Mamilla Hotel.
Going forward, the Tourism Ministry and
itraveljerusalem.com have plans to produce similar videos and documentaries recording the emotional side of celebrities’ trips to Israel. One of the videos has already received more than 10,000 hits on Youtube and both have done a great job in revising people’s view of Jerusalem – for the positive. The hope is that people will send the video to their friends around the world, and encourage more people to visit Israel.
Beardsley believes that a visit to Israel is something that everyone needs to experience. “There’s no other experience like this…beyond amazing,” said Beardsley. She was left with the impression that Israel and Jerusalem completely changed her for the better, and promises to return soon.
iTravelJerusalem.com is a new online international travel portal offering all the latest information on things to do, places to eat and places to stay in Jerusalem.