功夫 -- update

I try to keep this blog more meaningful than a simple list of updates on my life... but there may be some people interested in my Kung Fu training and if not, well I'd love to talk about it anyway.

I've continued to practice Kung Fu on weekday mornings before class. I finished learning the general movements of the first form some time ago, maybe 3 weeks ago by now, but I've only been working on that thus far. I have no complaints whatsoever: I'm being taught really well about the movements and their meanings. I also get two points of view to learn from: my teacher who teaches me a more traditional style, and his grandson who practices a more elegant and modern style. I'm thinking the difference is primarily that the older style is more focused on actual use and the modern style is more focused on competition. Either way it has been great to learn so far. Here is a video clip of Huang Po Sheng practicing the entire form in a performance:

Too bad this video isn't better quality. Po Sheng actually gave me a few vidoes from differnet performances. Here he is doing a different form:

This was the form that they originally started teaching me. After one day Huang Grandfather said this was for children and that Po Sheng would finish teaching it to me, but that he would teach me the above form. Keep in mind my Chinese is still limitted so the message your getting from me is a weakly translated one.

Here is one more video of some guy I don't even know, but he looks good throwing down this open hand form:

I don't know if I'll learn any weapons myself, although they did mention it. As for now, I prefer just to learn the open hand forms, but if anything develops I'll post it. Of course I'll post a video of me doing the form once I have learned it well enough, and then can find someone to video tape.