Dancing Swedes At Lunch

The Nordic countries are full of good ideas:

"It is absolutely fantastic!" exclaimed Asa Andersson, 33, who broke away from her job at a coffee shop to dance last week. "It is the first time I'm here. I'm totally happy and ecstatic, totally covered in sweat, and I'm full of energy. It does not get any better than this."

The first Lunch Beat was held in June 2010 in an underground parking lot in Stockholm. Only 14 people showed up. But they had so much fun they immediately planned another event. Word spread, and now the Swedish capital has monthly Lunch Beats that attract hundreds.

Similar events have been held in at least 10 other Swedish cities and in Finland and Serbia. Portugal's first try will be in Porto next month, organizers say.

The party starts at noon and goes for one hour. There's no alcohol, which gives it a different ambiance than nighttime clubbing, says Daniel Odelstad, 31-year-old organizer of Lunch Beat Stockholm.

"People are sober, it's in the middle of the day and it is very short, effective and intensive," he said. "You just have to get in there and dance, because the hour ends pretty quickly."

..."The first rule of Lunch Beat is that you have to dance," he said while checking prepaid tickets at the door. "If you don't want to dance during your lunch hour, then you should eat your lunch somewhere else."

The events are not-for-profit. Cover charges are used for rent and sandwiches, so dancers don't return to work hungry.