A Little Background
Adventures In Five Fists — My Shaolin Journey (Part 1 Of 4)

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Although I really want to use the Pinyin spellings for the Mandarin words in this post, I'm keeping them in Latin, so they can be easily found. There are some spelling variations, anyway, such as Taiji / Tai Chi / Tai Qi. I will use the most common, for the same reason.
Chapter titles will include the original Mandarin, along with the English, as the Mandarin names are used much more often than the translations, even during English-speaking training. I'm taking the opportunity to use Mandarin as much as possible, as part of my Adventures In Foreign Tongues challenge...
Things have been a little quiet around here, over the past month, but not because I had nothing left to say.
Since my last road trip came to an end, I've been digging into a few new things with gusto, and they are going very well, you'll be glad to know. But, before I tell you about this one, let me wind you back for a minute, because it's very special and it needs a little back story...
Back in 2013. I was living in England, and, well into a year's office dodging, I was working on self improvement. I wanted to do something new that I'd been intending to do for a long time, so I finally joined a Krav Maga class. This particular class, though, combined Krav Maga with Wing Chun, a powerful Chinese martial art made famous by Ip Man and his student, Bruce Lee. In combination, these systems make a range of deadly movements available for immediate use, and our training was intensive. I attended four classes a week and progressed quickly, as a result. At that time, I also had some experience with Qigong, which enhanced my experience.
But after my move to Europe, I didn't join another class, as I was focusing (frankly, too hard) on my career. This saddened me, and in hindsight, I do wish I had continued. However, the truth is that there is only today, and it is today that I share my new adventure with you.
Among the many new things I have been digging into, I have recently begun training in Wu Bu Quan (Five Stance Fist Form), which is the beginning of something better known to most as Shaolin Kung Fu. And since I have this blog, I have decided to share my entire journey, from the very beginning, with you.
As a beginner in this art, it will, of course, take some time for me to acquire the basic skills, and I will probably not have any impressive videos to share for quite a while, but for those who are interested, I will be sharing my experiences, surprises, successes and failures, as well as interesting things I learn and occasional media. For those with the appropriate key, there will be a few videos of my training, as well, first with empty hand, and then, as I progress, with various traditional weapons.
In addition to Kung Fu, I am practicing Tai Chi, although I haven't firmly decided on the so-called style, yet, and am taking tuition in several of them, until I have found what works best for me.
It's a long road and I'm excited to find out what I will encounter. If you'd like to know, too, you know where to come.