Excuse eliminated

This month’s winner is LOREN PARKS of Chico, California:

My wife and I arrived at the Napo Wildlife Center on New Year’s Eve 2018. This lodge in the Ecuadorian Amazon jungle is so remote that the only access for people and supplies is paddle canoe.

Upon arrival, we were informed of a big party with a special banquet that evening, so with great anticipation we entered the dining area and took our seats along with about 60 other guests. The setting was spectacular, and the buffet tables were set up with a variety of exotic foods, including a whole roasted pig with an apple in its mouth. The servers poured wine and champagne without limits, and the general mood of the guests was exhilaration.

As dining came to an end, the dance music started, and the resort manager moved from table to table encouraging people to dance. The response was tepid. We were reluctant because we are in our 70s, had not danced in several years and simply could not identify with the music being played.

When the manager got to our table, I responded to his exhortations to dance by telling him that we old-timers could only dance to rock-and-roll from the 1950s. He said “OK” and moved on. We were relieved, thinking we were off the hook.

About 10 minutes later, a local merengue dance ended and on came the quintessential music of the 1950s: Chuck Berry singing “Johnny B. Goode.” The floor and rafters were shaking with the big bass sound and Berry’s guitar licks.

Immediately the manager appeared before us with a big grin on his face, saying nothing but communicating with his eyes. We were trapped. With great trepidation, my wife and I danced the old-fashioned swing, complete with twirls and twists and every trick we could remember and do. The other dancers cleared the floor for us, and even the kitchen staff came out to watch.

We never realized how long that song is. Exhausted and sucking air by the time the song finally ended, we practically collapsed into our chairs, receiving great applause and taking away a memory we will never forget.

Tell us about the funniest thing that happened to you while traveling in a foreign country. (ITN prints no info on destinations in the United States.) There are no restrictions on length. ITN staff will choose each month’s winner, who will receive a free one-year subscription to ITN. Include your full mailing address. Entries not chosen cannot be acknowledged.