Waltz 'n' Polka

Falmouth Community Television FCTV runs a show filmed around the country by a Waltz and Polka night fan, and I was kind of stuck there the other day, waiting for a download. No dancing skill required. No artistry displayed other than the fiddle player. But they were having fun, and I got to think about the similarity of the two dances. The Waltz was Viennese, of course, done as a tiny shuffle or a hesitation step. The 1,2,3 of Polka went oom pah pah. Taken at this level, we see people enjoying the music, not worrying about how they look. Some of them even come to our CCBD dances.
For the real deal, there's a Waltz and Polka night in Rhode Island at the German Club.
In my classes, we learn that "Fake Viennese", as Mary French called it, and then the scary fast way that moves around the floor like the wind and looks so great, but people are afraid to do.