Alright every1 I know there is a thread about htis already but its years old so have started a new one. I am seriously considering going out to China for a few months next years for some intensive and traditional chinese kungfu /shoalin training.I have been looking at a school, http://www.chinashaolins.com. I heard about them through a gap year/work break organization. However, i have heard that perhaps it is very expensive? Has anyone been to this school, it is near Yantai me thinks? other wise can anyone recommend anywhere or tell me if this school is to expensive for what it is? Tim
I don't recommend it. It's obviously a New Wushu school catering to foreigners with the Shaolin monk shtick. There should be a few traditional Praying Mantis teachers around in Yantai... why not look for them? If you post the same question on KFMagazine forums Northern Mantis subforum or Mantisquarterly you'll prolly get people who can give you specific names.
The web site claims they are all 32nd generation shoalin monks? and at least one of them is a master in mantis kungfu. Personally i am more interested in 5 animals kungfu as my backgrond is in Laugar Kungfu which they also teach.
I get emails telling me that some nice guy in Nigeria wants to give me a millon dollars, as long as I give him some money first. How can someone by 32nd generation Shaolin when Shaolin ceased to exist for decades? it is a tourist trap mate. Why not go to Hong Kong instead and train with some of the schools there?
Kung Fu You could go to learn Hung Gar in HK. Here's the link : www.laufamilyhunggar.com Don't let the film style chambers put you off. It is HARD training with teachers who have 25+ yrs of experience and know how to fight. Recommended!
Yeah... no. Do you honestly think they can verifiably trace that stuff? Nowadays, Shaolin Monks=New Wushu in Buddhist Robes=Tourist trap. Their Mantis will probably just be Wushu Mantis, too. If you want to study Southern styles like Lau Gar and Five Animals, then why go to Yantai? If you go to Yantai, you should study Northern CMA, like Mantis, Longfist, Taiji, Xingyi, Bagua, Tongbei, etc. Go to Hong Kong if you want to do Hung Gar, etc.
I smell a scam there are plenty of great kung fu schools outside china that still do the whole traditional training. If i were you i would go to HK first. If you still wanna train in mainland china you should have someone who knows his stuff reccomend you to a school. Thats usually how it works in the KF circles here anyways - if my sifu knows another instructor who teacher another style well he always recommends it.
ok, cool thanks for the advice. I will look into going hong kong to do some Hung gar has anyone been to this http://www.laufamilyhunggar.com/ place?
try this site - they have a forum section specifically detailing different martial arts schools in china http://www.shaolin-wushu.de/en/index.html
my bud has (he now teaches Lau Family Hung Kuen in the Phillipines) he goes to HK as often as he can. He said the training is HARD but you will learn REAL kung fu.He has psoted some footage on youtube. here's the links : [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIKAEaL1IUM"]YouTube[/ame] [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsXClIrUHKE"]YouTube[/ame] You may even get the chance to meet Lau Kar Leung (aka The Pops) and maybe even Lau Kar Fei (Gordon Lui)
Folks, Don't mean to be a pessimist here, but I would have to ask, "What do you intend to get out of this few months, intensive training?". I see two bad things that come out of this: 1) If you're already training with your Sifu, wouldn't this China training slap him/her in the face by indicating your current training isn't intense enough? 2) If you go to a reputable school, like the Lau Family Hung Gar and receive great training for a few months, what will you do with this when you return to your home country? It's highly unlikely you'll get the same intense training at home. At best case, you learn some great techniques that make you hungry for more and more trips out to Hong Kong (more $$$$). At worst case, the techniques you learned are in conflict with what your Sifu is teaching and you will slowly unlearn all that was taught in your camp, leaving you with just some good, albeit painful memories. Unless my Sifu specifically says, hey if you're in HK, you should go check out that school, I would prefer to keep dreaming from afar. Anyone agree or am I just being too pragmatic?
If it were me, and let's say I had $2000 and 2 weeks, and I wanted to get in some bad ass training and go to china, I would: Stay in the states for a week and train hard. HARD I tell you, up at 8 AM, busting my hump on footwork and forms, getting partner training any time I can get one of my brothers to take off, hitting the rice bag, practicing 1000's of reps of my various defensive and offensive hands, etc. THEN, I would take a week trip to China and just have fun. That's just me though.
I agree it can be a tricky situation if your Sifu for example is a Hung Kuen Sifu and you go train at the Lau's. Unless your Sifu sends a recommendation your way I would just avoid the issue entirely. You cannot gain enough insight into an art just for a few weeks IMO. The best way IMO is to touch hands with as many people in China, HK or wherever. There are probably parks that have some degree of public training(mostly push hands). Ask around here or some other forums. Someone might know of some spots.
For November this year if anyone is interested http://www.southwingchun.com/files/Tour.html Though I think you would have to be a Wing Chun student (of whatever lineage) to get the most out of it. If I had the money this year I would, so here is hoping
chinashaolins I hope I'm not too late in posting this. I'm a student here in Yantai and am trying to set up a webpage about the reality of life here. Initially I was planning on staying 1 year and have decided to leave within 4 months. the page is still a work in progress but it has some more honest pictures of the school. Feel free to go by http://chinashaolins.googlepages.com/ Currently I know of at least 5 students who have abandoned their training here. A few of them went to a nearby school and speak well of it.
Kudos for showing and telling it like it is. It's a much needed thing these days to wipe away the fantasy that can be in some peoples heads.
