Sunday 29 July 2007

Sunday Morning Flying to China this afternoon

Why am I sitting in front of my computer?? Because I'm horribly over excited and can't face re-checking/packing everything again!! Dave similarly is playing on his (resurrected) Game Boy to try and quell the panic :)

We will of course have 4 hours of this once we get to the airport this afternoon and then another 9 hours of flight time. But, seeing as aeroplanes are designed to stand up to ridiculous pressures I'm sure they'll contain us :)

We are taking our mobiles but due to extortionate call charges abroad and an 8 hour time difference they will most likely be off except to check messages each evening.

We would both like to say HUGE thanks to everyone who has helped us get to this point and will come back with ridiculous stories, entertaining items and if we manage to get a vidicam a training montage >Fade up Eye of the Tiger<

Have a splendid August people, we will post when we can from Beijing!

Wednesday 25 July 2007

Wednesday Night Panicking

So the only night free this week and we have spent it productively panicking and throwing together what we need for GOING TO CHINA! See I told you we were excited. :)
Jules from our Kungfu club came round and stuck more needles in my arm and legs this time (she is a qualified acupuncturist). It is tremendously odd because they are bloody great big nails sticking out of your limbs but they do not hurt, just the odd tingle and hugely warm sensations and a terrible urge to giggle! Anyway my elbow is way better again so ready for training tomorrow :)

Dave won't stop over excitedly panicking, I'm beginning to wonder if he will ever sleep again!

Tuesday 24 July 2007

Monday & Tuesday Training

In order to instil the first and second forms in our very being and also to create the "jelly leg effect" Matt tortured the class with held positions at intervals during the form. Whilst sweating attractively we positioned and repositioned to get the moves and feel of the form and then held it for as long as it took for Matt to check everyone in the class. This is a fabulously good teaching aid as the quicker we are to "get it" the less time spent standing on one leg with your knee raised fists clenched and foot and quad muscles screaming in agony. These techniques combined to form Devastator! Strongest of the Decepti...anyway you get the idea :)

The muggy weather here may be helping towards training in 50% humidity in China, we are just lacking the 33oC+ temperatures to go with it. We'll see if we can bring some summer back from the East!

The Weekend

The Last Weekend before we fly was brilliant. First thing on Saturday we went to see Transformers with only 4 other people in the Cinema.

We followed that with a Kung Fu Demonstration in Aldershot town Centre Matt, Calum, Kate and myself handed out flyers for Ancestral Mountains and the newly re-opened Games Shop.

Saturday evening we attended a BBQ organised by Matt and Mike and had a great time. There was ping pong, Bai Long (Tai Chi Bat and Ball) and LRP swords to keep everyone occupied and the food was great.

On Sunday Kate and I went to a Self Defence and Application Seminar and then to an All You Can Eat Curry house in Camberly.

All in all a great weekend.

Friday 20 July 2007

Thursday Training

Having enjoyed a night off getting all the stuff we are taking ready we were back to training last night.

After a short warm up we fetched a whole host of floor mats in and did some wais and leg exercises, which consisted of kneeling with a partner holding down your legs and then bending forward at the waist. Suprisingly hard on the backs of the legs rather than the core muscles.

We went on to more stretches and leg swings and then straight into another session of rolling away from sword wielding students.

The third hour finished with some slow Man da Style sparring and we carried on into Sylabus material for the secound hour.

We practiced Forms and Drills and finished the lesson with Yoga style torture Crunches led by Kate.

With just over a week to go we are very excited.

Wednesday 18 July 2007

Tuesday Training

We Trained again last night, this time in Farnbrough. There we used the soft room to practice yet more rolling while being chased by Shinai wielding fellow students.

We also did some jumping kicks and went through several of the early forms before revising the two person striking drills.

Training again on Thursday and on Sunday we are going to a Quinna and self defence seminar on sunday.

Monday 16 July 2007

Monday Training

Tonight was our first training session of the week. We Started with a quick warm up and moved straight into some Wu Shu Jumping Practice, and a short session of sparring in an enclosed space.

We also practiced breakfalls and rolling eventually leading up to passing a target pad between people while having to dodge and roll past someone with a Shinai.

In the Third hour Kate Stretched and I practiced some Pi-gua and slow Man Da style sparring.

New Training location

With just two weeks to go and an unprecedented heat wave about to hit Beijing the location in which we will be training has been moved. We will now be training at the Jietai Temple on top of a mountain overlooking Beijing. Below are some pictures of the temple.








Set in forested mountains to the west of Beijing, the Jietai Temple (Temple of Ordination) is a tranquil retreat amidst fresh mountain air, scented with burning incense. The temple was first built in the year 622 during the Tang dynasty.

Almost 1400 years old, it sits on a hillside looking more like a fortress than a temple, surrounded by forbiddingly tall red walls. On a clear day, this temple offers an unhindered view of Beijing.