Sometimes media moments pass me by. I hear that Matt Harding, known by most as “Dancing Matt,” became a viral sensation around 2006 when his first dancing video circulated the world via e-mail. Subsequent videos are now YouTube darlings. My first introduction to Matt was last week when the video “Where the Hell is Matt?”was used as a means to “check-in” and start a meeting.
Being a lover of all things dance, I perked up in my seat to watch him breaking into the same awkward dance frame after frame. After getting past his leaping gate moves, the sense of community and the acceptance of Matt – albeit briefly – into the community as they joined him in dance also rings strong. It reminded me of all the giving writers and bloggers I’ve met virtually over the past year. Can you imagine us all dancing together?
What also struck me was the joy on his face paired with the captions of the locals whizzing by. Nepal, Mumbai, Zanzibar, Australia and Spain to name a few. My faves were him jamming alone in the Demilitarized Zone in Korea with a guard standing point, with the children of Timbuktu and then the rowdy college kids in Austin, Texas. From doing some Google reading on Matt’s background, I read he’s noted in past interviews that Americans need to see more of the world. As I continued to watch the city and country names go by, I sat with both an awe and touch of shame for all I have yet to see.
How about you? What world destinations have you been able to travel to? Which ones are on tap for the future? And would you dance with Matt if given the chance? 🙂
To find out more, you can check out Matt’s website, which tells you where he is now, upcoming dance dates, etc.
Barbara McDowell 
This was wonderful! What an amazing journey…and he did it DANCING. If we could get enough people in the world to dance together – we’d have far fewer problems.
I agree Lesann. I hear rumor he might be coming to Ohio and will join in if I can. 🙂
I love that he does the same moves in ever place – except he did mix it up in India. I just kept thinking, how cool that he got to travel to all these places and he thought about how he could make his travels special and came up with this.
You have got to meet up with him in Ohio! That video is just such a great expression of freedom and life, it makes me happy on so many levels. Thanks for sharing it, Barbara! I’m going to check out more of Matt.
Yes Tameri, him doing the same moves is what made it fun for me as well. Those are his signature moves and he is being himself all around the globe. True joy.
Loved the India dance – so cool! I had never even heard of this guy so thank you for sharing – that totally rocked my afternoon! I’d dance with him and his dance troup in a second flat.
I, like you, have not seen much of this vast world either. I am not a huge traveller and it’s unfortunate because there are so many interesting places to see. Tks for the FAB video fun!
Well Natalie, we are going to have to take some of your tailgating gear and hit the road! So many places to see. Think we’ll get in trouble if we do our signature moves on the hitch pole?
Thanks for this Barb! It’s so joyful. I loved them all but the Bollywood moves in India made me laugh the loudest. I just checked out his website and loved his story. Tameri is right! As the Wana Sistah who appears to bust the best moves, you should definitely be someone who dances with Matt!
You are right, Patricia, the Bollywood was great when he stopped his dance and moved into their perfect precision. And yes, I shall be our class dance ambassador. 🙂
I love dancing Matt! I haven’t watched this video in forever. Thank you for sharing it again!
Thanks for reading and sharing a comment Alica! I totally missed it when first popular most likely due to me still avoiding all things social media related – Facebook, YouTube, etc. My how things have changed. 🙂
Love the expression on his face. Unbridled joy. (And not a video game in sight.) I’ve been to Asia and a couple cities in Europe, but I’ve got a bucket list of places I’d love to travel to. Now you’ve got me wondering when my passport expires. 🙂
I have a bucket list too Jennifer. And my passport is expired. Need to get on that. 🙂
how cool! he sounds like a fun guy…….foreign countries are not so much on my to do list, (there’s bridges EVERYWHERE!) but I have always wanted to go to Maine…
Maine looks like it has some beautiful places, Carrie. Great choice. I have so much to see in the States as well as overseas.
What a wonderful thing to do! And I agree with him – we don’t travel enough. I had the great good fortune to take a trip decades ago to Norway, Northern Ireland and England. We took a boat tour of Norway and were on a ship with Japanese, Australians, Americans and Norweigians. You never quite realize how truly small the world is until you sit down in a deck chair next to people you had assumed were very different from you. What a pleasant surprise to find out that everyone, no matter what country, shares a common humanity.
That sounds like an amazing trip Ruth! And you are right about humanity. We have so many great, relatable similarities. Basics like getting hungry or feeling cold, then things like loving a sport or type of music.
I’ve watched this video like a million times. Never fails to make me cry. It’s wonderful the way the video makes you feel like we’re all connected in the world, and even when we’re very different, we’re not so different at all.
Barbara – I have never heard of dancing Matt! Ah! Thanks for introducing him to me. I think your observation about seeing more of the world is so true. Blogging has opened my eyes to a number of new perspectives. I can see I’ve found another one with this video. Thanks. 🙂
Barbara, I’ve never heard of this before. I LOVED it. The video made me smile. Love love love.
I do love to travel, and I’ve been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to visit some very cool places. My parents are avid travelers and over the years have given us, and now my children, amazing opportunities to see the world.
The world is so big and so amazing. I think we owe it to ourselves to explore what we can.
thank you for sharing this.