Monthly Archives: September 2014

Our last day in Kumamoto Thursday 18th

Had a free day today so we got up early and did a bit of washing and cleaning around the dojo before heading in to town to buy bus tickets. We will get the bus to the airport at about 6.30 in the morning. Naoyuki Sensei is picking us up from the dojo and dropping us off at a bus stop on the highway which cuts about half an hour off the over all trip. After we had our tickets Sandra and I went our separate ways. I went off to have a last look around town, first stop though was starbucks for a coffee while I waited for some shops to open then I had a look around for a couple of last minute presents and just explored some side streets etc. For lunch I dropped in to CoCo Ichiban which is a Japanese chain restaurant that I had found that do a gluten free curry. I was nice enough but I definitely preferred all the fresh food I have been eating since I got here. Like many chain restaurants in Australia, it had that kind of processed flavor to it. On the up side, I had the large serve and a drink and it cost me $5.30!
On the way back to the dojo I decided to take a wander down a couple of side streets after Soke Sensei yesterday gave us a little bit of history of the area. The Dojo is only a 25-30 minute walk from the castle and the area’s inbetween are a maze of tiny narrow streets and old buildings, there are several Shrines and temples nestled in amongst the houses and businesses. Soke Sensei was telling us that this area was once the home to the lower Samurai warriors and thier families. The streets are narrow and winding with very few straight lines and they form a honeycomb or brickwork kind of pattern. This is so that there are no long straight area’s where invaders could get a clear shot or a clear run at the castle. There are winding little canals and streams in amongst the streets a well, and then you turn around and there is the Highway! Some of the rock walls around the houses in these area’s are over 400 yrs old

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A temple on the highway nestled between a service station and an office block

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Some of the narrow winding streets near the dojo

Back at the dojo I packed the last few things- I have just managed to squeeze everything in to my bag.. It is filled to overflowing… bad news is… I don’t think that pillow is coming home with me! I still have a gi to fit in there in the morning but there will be room for that… just!
I had a relaxing afternoon before Minowa Sensei’s class this evening. As always it was a great class. Marc Sensei joined us which was nice. A big thank you to Marc Sensei for taking the time out to be a part of our last training session this trip, and a big thanks to his lovely wife and children for sharing.
We started the class with the usual Kihons and then played a little teamwork game from Minowa Sensei’s stretching class and then broke into groups. I was in a group working on Tenshin again. Gradually working through the changes I’ve made and each class refining a few more details. So many things to remember! We finished off with Some more basic punching and then a quick photo and it was time to say goodbye.

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Tonight's class minus the gorgeous orange belt lady who took the picture for us

After class Sensei Sandra went with Minowa Sensei to an onsen but I chose to stay back and finish packing and do some washing, empty bins and all that stuff that needs to be done before tomorrow morning.
All in all it has been an amazing time here in Japan. I am looking forward to returning home to share some of the things I have learned while I was here. I highly recommend any seniors who have never been here before get your applications in for next years scholarship trip. This is a fantastic opportunity our club provides and I believe it is very likely the only place in the world offering this experience to it’s members at this time.
Right now I had better get going and get these last few things packed. It’s been great, see you all soon!

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I love Kumamoto!

Day 10 Wednesday the 17th September

We started the day with another great training session with Soke Sensei this morning. It was only a short seiza this morning (about 15 minutes) but it is definitely getting easier. This was to be our last morning training though as we have to leave very early Friday morning. I’m definitely feeling like things are starting to come together for me, Some of the things I have been working on this week got a slight nod from Soke Sensei this morning so I’m happy to know I’m moving in the right direction. I’m still ridiculously, embarrasingly slow when it comes to speed training.. especially kicking and kihon dosa yon! That’s something that will only improve with time and doing alot more of it I think. We did the usual routine, Basic punching, stepping in Sansin dachi, seisan dachi, shiko dachi, Kosa dachi, neko ashi dachi, rinten, rinten hanten, then repeat the above with punches, then all of the beginner kata at speed (Kihon dosa, kihon kata’s, seiken no migi hidari, zenshin Kotain, shi ho wari, shime no kata) then a quick break and then into kata practice, going from shi ho hai up. Because I don’t know as many kata as Sandra Sensei and Todd Sensei, I have a bit of spare time at the end to go over the bits I need to work on or any feedback I have been given. There has been alot of focus on Tenshin for me this trip which is a fairly new kata for me. I’m definitely feeling alot more confident with it than I was when I arrived! After kata training we do a little bit of Bo.. for me mostly just shaolin today, I am still not very good with this, especially turning but I have figured out how to do rinten since being here.. however slowly it may be! You have to start somewhere right? The last part of training is speed kicking the long length of the dojo.. OMG, do I feel unco-ordinated doing this next to Sensei’s Sandra and Todd!
After training I came upstairs and wrote up some notes and tried out a few more things, mostly where I have been given feedback for one kata, how that applies to parts or all of other kata. I was just wondering what I might do with myself for the day when Sandra informed me that we were to do some gardening today. We had previously asked if we could do anything to help out around the place before we left so this morning we were tasked with weeding the back yard.

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Sandra and I hard at work

We got straight to work and had been working hard for awhile when Soke Sensei came out and told us we were going for Sushi for lunch at one O’ Clock. We both nodded and said thank you, and carried on as we were until Soke said… ‘now’! We had no idea we had been at it for so long! We raced upstairs for a quick change and wash and went out to a local sushi restaurant with Soke Sensei. The sushi was delicious and so fresh, but the plates just kept coming! I was so full and Soke kept putting plates in front of me. They have a game at the Restaurant, as you finish a plate of Sushi, you slide your plate into a little door at the end of the table which automatically counts how many plates you have had, for every five plates you are entered into a random lotto type game and you can win a little plastic toy. I was so full I could barely move and Soke Sensei said.. we just need a couple more plates for another game!

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Yummy Sushi

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With Soke Sensei after lunch

After lunch i had a quick rest to digest a little bit while Sandra called home for a chat but I could feel my body starting to seize up so I decided it was best to just get straight back into it. We were finished in an hour and had showers and a rest and caught up on our blogging before the afternoon classes started.

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All done

The Kids Class with Naoyki Sensei was lots of fun as usual. We started off with some rolling, I spent a bit of time watching and stetching before I joined in as I was a bit stiff after the gardening! After rolling and break falling practice on the mats we packed them away and did some Kihons, basic stepping punching and blocking and some Kihon Kata.

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Sensei Sandra playing Sumo with the kids

The Adult class with Soke Sensei was structured much the same as the morning class, there were 5 black belts and two brown belts in the class tonight, I felt a little bit better about the speed training and Bo when I realised no one else could keep up with Sandra Sensei and Todd Sensei either! I felt a bit fatigued tonight so my training wasn’t ideal but I still focused on the things I’ve learned while I’ve been here and I’m slowly chipping away at some of them. It was great to see Keichiro Oda in class tonight, Keichiro came and stayed with Sensei Sandra and Sensei Martin for a few months back when I was a white belt. Since then we have seen each other a few times at Soke Cups and Training trips. Todd Sensei and Goshi Sensei also joined us for class tonight. It was great to train with them all one last time.

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After training tonight- From Left to Right, Todd Sensei, Sandra Sensei, Soke Sensei, myself, Keichiro Sensei, Goshi Sensei

Tomorrow is a fairly free day for our last day. I hope to head in to the Kamitori/ Shimatori one last time and then come back and pack. After Minowa Sensei’s class tomorrow night we are heading to an onsen with her so I think it will be a late night, and then we have to be ready to be picked up just after 6 on Friday morning to head to the airport.. I guess there is always the flight for sleeping! I would like to be pretty much packed up and ready before class starts on Thursday night

Day 9 Tuesday 16th September

I can’t believe our time here is almost done, we  only have a few more days to go! This morning was a quiet one which I was glad of as i was feeling very tired today after several late nights of visiting and writing blogs etc. When I woke up Sandra was already down in the dojo training. I reviewed my notes from the night before in our room and went over some of the things that Toyodome Sensei was helping me with last night. Unfortunately doing lots of the opening and closing moves of Sochin has really aggravated my tennis elbow so I didn’t do too much this morning but I think I may have found something that will make a big difference. It’s funny how you can hear something over and over and then one day someone just says it a different way and it’s like Óoooh… so that’s what you’ve all been trying to say!’
I did some washing and helped Sensei Sandra finish of with some cleaning and then had a bit of a rest before Minowa Sensei took us out again to her stretching class. These women are so inspiring, I feel so privileged to have been able to share that time with them. The class is for older women, I believe Minowa Sensei said the youngest is 58, and yet they are so lively and energetic and fun, and thier bodies so young. The class is really well designed, beginning with stretches and body mobilisation exercises, then some games to exercise the brain and co-ordination as well as teamwork (and a great laugh). After that they have a quick break and are into the dancing. This week Sensei Sandra and I just watched the dancing part as they are getting ready for a performance soon at a festival so they were working on spacing and placement of everyone. It was great to watch. One the way home we stopped for ice cream.. this has become something of a ritual when we are with Minowa Sensei and Tomika San! After we got home we had a bit more rest time before the evening family class.
I went in to the dojo a little bit early on my own and spent another 5 minutes on what I was working on this morning, I figure little bits at a time all add’s up.
Class tonight was lots of fun, we started by warming up with some running races and skipping etc. After the warm up we got the mats out and did some rolling. First off we just did somersaults, then backwards rolling, and then normal ukemi. After a few goes through Naoyuki Sensei got out a bar for us to jump over before we rolled and gradually started to increase the height.

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Warm up exercises!

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Rolling practice

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How high can you go!

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practicing ushiro ukemi

When we had finished the rolling and packed the mats away we lined up for some Kihon Dosa Ni and Kihon Dosa San and then some basic blocking. From there we broke up into groups and did some bunkai. The Black belts were doing Kihon Dosa Yon Bunkai together in a rotation.

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Practicing Kihon Dosa Yon Bunkai

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Lastly we did some Mawashi Geri with the kick pads before finishing up the class
When class finished it was time for Souji again.. the Tuesday night class is the biggest and Souji could easily be done in one pass each but there is so much fun to be had in racing each other that the floor ends up spotless by the end!

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Souji

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Rady Set Go!

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Saying Thank You and goodbye at the end of the class

Day 8 Monday 15th September

Today was a public holiday here in Japan, a day set aside to honour the elderly, so there was no morning training. I woke up and spent some time going over my training notes from the past week and going over some stuff in our room, I was feeling very demoralised and frustrated this morning, there are so many things I want to be able to do and I just don’t know where to start, concepts that I am starting to understand on an intelectual level but my body is still years behind.  I came to the conclusion in my notes this morning that there are some fundamental things missing and until I get them sorted nothing much else will fall into place but I didn’t even know where to start when it comes to training. After Sandra came back up from doing her own training she convinced me to go for a bike ride to the shops with her. Now it should be said that I can’t really ride a bike very well and the thought of it kinda scares the bejeezus out of me. I grew up the youngest of four kids in a house that didn’t have 4 bikes and somehow I just never really learned to ride until i was an adult trying to teach my kids to ride, but It’s not something I am comfortable with, especially in a strange city with very narrow streets, non existant footpaths and lots of people! But today I thought what the hell.. It could be good for a laugh- I needed cheering up, and I needed to clear my head. We didn’t go on the streets, there is a supermarket not far from the dojo and to get there there is a nice wide, not too populated path so it was a really good opportunity to get used to the bike.

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I'm still not enirely convinced this is a good idea.. put that camera away!

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Well I made it all the way there, now just to get back to the dojo!

After we got back and had breakfast and a chat it was time to get ready for the demonstration we were going to today with Tanaka Sensei. Tanaka Sensei’s first student, Shingo, works at an old peoples home, and, because today is a day for honoring the elderly, they had invited him to do a demonstration of Karate. We had arranged earlier what we would be doing for the demonstration so Tanaka Sensei came over to the Sohonbu a bit early to discuss the details with us of timing etc, and to practice some bunkai with Sensei Sandra

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Tanaka Sensei and Sandra Sensei practicing their Bunkai for the demonstration

After a quick practice we headed of to the centre. When we got there they took us up to a room where we could change and bought us tea etc. It was all very organised, we had a room set aside for us to change with a sign on the door . I was surprised at their hospitality, although I shouldn’t be, everyone is always exceedingly hospitable and polite in Japan, but still, it was nice that they bought us chairs and a tray with tea and coffee just while we got changed. While we waited in the room, Toyodome Sensei joined us. I have never met Toyodome Sensei before although we have been facebook friends since Sensei Sandra and Jodie came last year. It was great to finally meet him, he is a very funny friendly gentleman. While we were waiting we also met Shingo, Tanaka Sensei’s student who worked at the centre. He was also really lovely and took us down to where the demonstration was to take place. There were some other demonstrations planned and we were lucky enough to see some traditional Japanese dancing before it was our turn.

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Traditional Japanese dancers

Tanaka Sensei had gone through the plan with us at the dojo, he was going to give a short talk introducing us and karate and then he was going to take the residents through a lesson in correct fist, basic punch, and kiai, then we would do our Kata and bunkai and last Shingo would break through some roof tiles. I was so impressed with Tanaka sensei’s presentation and the way he got the residents involved, the looks on some faces when he told them they were going to kiai!

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Tanaka Sensei introducing us, Shingo is in the black t shirt on the right. Unfortunately this is where my phone died so there are no more photo's of today

After we did our demonstrations we were running late so Shingo decided he wouldn’t do his part, luckily the other staff member hosting the demonstrations convinced him to do it and also had a go punching through a tile! After we finished we were treated to some lovely singing from another staff member. A very talented staff I must say!
After the demonstrations the hospitality continued as they served us Matcha (traditional Japanese green tea) and Mochi to say thank you.

From the senior centre Tanaka Sensei and Toyodome sensei decided to take us to Musashi park, where it is said Musashi’s tomb is located. Tanaka Sensei explained that there is debate about this and no one really knows where his body is buried but thee is a statue and a shrine built here to him. After a wander through the park we went to Musashi Udon, a noodle restaurant next to the park and had some dinner.
This is where we said our goodbye’s to tanaka Sensei, hopefully we will have another chance to catch up before we leave. From here Toyodome Sensei took us out to Ichimaru Sensei’s dojo for training. This was an interesting experience, when we arrived the kids were doing kumite practice, they are all so fast and very focused. While we were there Toyodome Sensei asked me to perform a couple of Kata for him and gave me some very valuable feedback, Things which tie in very closely to the things I gained from Kugisaki Sensei yesterday but which left me in a bit of a spin. I am now feeling a little bit better about the direction I need to go with my training.. surprise surprise.. it’s not at all what I was thinking!! Thank goodness there are people around who know more than me who can guide me along the way- Sometimes you just need to trust the process!
While we were at Ichimaru Sensei’s dojo Toyodome Sensei also pulled out his Sai. I think Sensei Sandra suggested he give me a demonstration of Sai Kata, but instead I was treated to a brief lesson in Sai, (well… I played around with them for a bit and managed to whack muyself in the head with one!) as well as a demonstration of how Sai can be used in Sochin.
After training Toyodome Sensei bought us back to the dojo and gave Sensei Sandra and I the most beautiful treasured gift’s. I really am overwhelemd every day by the beautiful people here.
I really wish I had some photo’s to show you of the afternoon but unfortunately my phone died and I can’t get photo’s off my camera until I get home. I’m sure Sensei Sandra will post some though so if you are interested head over to her facebook page or Sunshine Coast Karate facebook or webpage.

Day 7 Sunday the 14th September

I had a fairly quiet morning at the dojo this morning. I woke up to some messages from Charlotte so I spent some time chatting to her.. I ended up a bit emotional after our chat, missing home, missing the kids and feeling very far away and helpless when things are not going to plan. I messaged James and Paul as well over breakfast because I was feeling homesick and by the end of our chat I was feeling a bit better. Sandra came out of the dojo after doing some morning training and decided to head off on a bike ride. I decided to stay at the dojo and do a bit of cleaning. I feel this is just something small I can do to try to give back and I have felt so overwhelmed with care the past few days I had to do something. Sandra came back as I was finishing up some washing and we did a tag team, she stayed in to chat to her family while I went out and about. I only intended to go to the supermarket and get a few supplies but I ended up walking all the way in to town again.. just for a wander around really.
I got back to the dojo in time for a quick shower and we headed off with Kugisaki Sensei to his dojo for some training. Kugisaki Sensei is an amazing and inspiring man, one of O Sensei’s last remaining students, he is a living treasure in Chito-Ryu. Kugisaki Sensei’s specialty is application of kata and bunkai. I Didn’t understand much of what was said due to the language barrier but i still feel I learned alot from todays session.. if my copious notes are anything to go by! There were times when I felt very much out of my depth amongst much more senior karateka, but as I said, I still feel I got alot from the session. It was encouraging to note that there were some things I remember him showing us last time I trained with him in 2011 and I feel I have a much better understanding now of what he meant than I did then, or a slightly better ability to do the things he showed us.
After training we went back to Kugisaki Sensei’s house for a cold drink before heading out to dinner, more Yakiniku.. I really appreciate the effort everyone is going to to accomodate my difficult dietry needs. Especially Sandra who has had to eat the same thing two days in a row!
My head is still spinning a bit from all the information I was trying to absorb in our 3odd hours of training this afternoon, but for now It’s time for bed, tomorrow is another day

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Sandra heading off for a ride this morning

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Kugisaki Sensei's Dojo

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Dinner With Kugisaki Sensei and his beautiful wife and one of his students

Day 6 Saturday 13th September

It’s Saturday, the start of a long weekend here in Kumamoto, so I enjoyed a nice sleep in and a relaxed breakfast this morning and took a little bit of time to organise my suitcase and all the gifts I have bought etc…It might all fit! Minowa Sensei came to pick us up at 9.30 to go to a local shopping centre where we got a few more presents and looked around the shops for awhile. While we were there we were also lucky enough to run into one of Minowa Sensei’s daughters with her family.

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Hmmm... what to buy.. a whole shop full of junk food!

When we had finished shopping we went to pick up Tomika San for lunch. Today for lunch we went to a Yakiniku restaurant. There is an all you can eat salad and drink bar and then you order your meat and grill it at the table yourself on a gas grill. It was very good and I ate way too much! I thought that was it, I had fruit and jelly from the salad bar for desert but then on the way home we stopped for ice cream! Good Old Baskin and Robbins are even in Japan! I have been very well fed by Minowa Sensei and Tomika san!

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Sandra enjoying lunch

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Minowas Sensei and Tomika at Yakiniku restaurant

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Eating Jelly with chopsticks! Minowa Sensei admitted even Japanese people think it's too hard and just use fingers!

By the time we got back to the dojo Marc Waterfield Sensei was already here with his daughter Reina preparing for the afternoon kids class. Sensei Sandra had a bit of fun chasing reina about the dojo before she and Marc Sensei did some Kumi bo practice before class.

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Sensei's training before the kids class

As people started to arrive we got the mats out and put them together for the class. It was a great fun class, It is interesting to me to note that I could follow most of what Marc Sensei was saying to the kids and what he wanted us to do just by watching. After the first section we had a drink break and Sandra Sensei took a stretching segment.

After that we did some Gyaku Zuki training where I partnered up with one of the older boys in the class, he was a great student and responded instantly to any feedback. All of the kids in the class were pretty awesome really! Heaps of fun and there were some real cuties! Sandra Sensei finished of the class with some more kihons and some Ukemi practice and we all packed up the mats together… packing up and cleaning up is always so much fun here, the kids are encouraged to do the job but they aren’t stopped from playing while they do it either which is great fun to watch. I think sometimes we ( or maybe I should say I) get too caught up in getting the job done right away now, and forget to enjoy the process.

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Teamwork

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Ok.. that's enough carrying... stacks on!

This evening Minowa Sensei and Tomika san picked us up again to go out to a local observatory. We saw saturn and Mars through a big telescope up in the observatory and the saw the Andromeda Galaxy through another telescope out on the deck. We also met up with Minowa Sensei’s daughters and grand children while we were there, what a beautiful family they were.

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checking out Saturn through the telescope

Back at the dojo again now and I am once again marvelling at the welcome we have had and at how lovely everyone has been. I think tomorrow morning will be a quiet one around the dojo, do some cleaning and try to somehow give back a little of what we have been given.

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The Sohonbu from the street. A beautiful place to be

Day 5 Friday 12th September

We were up early for morning training with Soke Sensei again this morning. I am finding that seiza is easier every day and this morning went by quite quickly. Todd Sensei joined us for training this morning too. We started with the usual morning kihons. Todd Sensei certainly up’s the ante when it comes to speed training. I felt like a lost little kid trailing behind the big kids beside me this morning! I was trying to remember some of the pointers that Todd Sensei gave me on Wednesday in the beginning but then I just was trying desperately to keep up- All good form went out the window! Soke was there on the side encouraging me the whole time.. faster, faster, go, go, go! I am reminded that I have a long way to go when it comes to speed training. After Kihons we did some Kata practice. A good oportunity to cement some of the things I have been learning this week. After Kata practice we did a few more laps of kicking and rinten to finish off.
After Souji and a chat with Todd Sensei we had some showers and breakfast and headed in to Kumamoto Castle. We planned to go there earlier in the week but didn’t make it so today that was our plan. I had an enjoyable couple of hours wandering around reading the history of the area.. Oh and doing more shopping of course! Sandra had gone her own way for a bit.. a nostalgia trip for her back to her early days of competing and training in Japan. We met up again and had some lunch then Sandra came back to the dojo while I caught a tram over to the Suizenji Gardens.

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The walk into the Castle

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Sandra and I in front of Kumamoto Castle

On the tram I met another lovely local lady who spoke very good english. It turned out she had lived in New York for 6 years with her husbands work. She had kids the same ages as mine (but both girls) and we chatter about a few things, and she gave me some advice on appropriate gifts!
The gardens were beautiful, I didn’t do much, just a quick wander around the paths and then I sat and enjoyed the  view and the stillness by the water for awhile before heading back to the dojo for evening classes.

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Suizenji gardens

The kids class was just a small one again tonight, I spent part of the time working with a young green belt on Kihon Kata Ichi, Ni, and San. It’s amazing how easy it is to communicate in the dojo even with my terrible Japanese.

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Tonights training buddy

If I felt like a beginner out of my depth this in this mornings class, tonight was no better, just add an extra Sandan and another Shihan to the mix! There are a few theme’s starting to emerge in my training and the feedback I am getting though. What seem like small little technical or sequence corrections are all starting to come together now in a more coherent form and I am seeing that underlying those technical things are a few key basics I need to work on.
One of the aspects of this trip I haven’t really touched on all that much in my blogs is the incredible atmosphere here and the welcome that we have had. Staying here at the sohonbu it feels like Soke Sensei and his family have welcomed us into their family home. We try to show our gratitude by bringing gifts, being respectful and leaving the place clean and tidy at all times but I can’t help but feel sometimes that it is never enough. Whether it is Soke Sensei waiting to greet us the day we arrived, Minowa Sensei sharing her dance class with us and taking us out for the day, or the blankets that turn up in our room one day because the weather is cooling down, everyone is just amazing. Tonight after the kids class Naoyuki Sensei was asking about my elbow. Most of you are probably aware I have been carrying an injury for quite a few months now, lots of rest and physio in the last few weeks before I came has made quite a difference and it has held up quite well to the training but today it has been a bit achy and sore again. I mentioned this and he prescribed more onsen! We had a laugh but then, later, after the adult class Naoyuki’s wife Yuko came with some heat patches for me to try. It is this kind of care and thoughfulness that makes me feel I am really a part of something very special in the Chito-Ryu family. If there is anything I would like to pass on to the people it home it is this sense that Chito-Ryu really is more than just another style of Karate or a form of exercise. It is a community, a family that spreads worldwide, and the relationships you will build in and out of the dojo have the potential to be lifelong and life changing. Once you embrace the dojo community your karate and all other area’s of your life will grow enormously.

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A nice view of the Sohonbu through the grass from the path we took in to town

Day 4 Thu 11th September

Today has been all about shopping! There was no morning training so I got to sleep in which was needed after yesterday. Woke up feeling fresh and ready to go. We had the day entirely free and all I really needed to do was grab a few groceries so Sandra and I decided to walk into town together to do some shopping. I’m glad we did because by the end of the day we realised our time left here is filling up very fast. Once there we organised a time to be back at the dojo and went our separate ways. First things first, it was time for a coffee! After sitting down over a coffee, checking my budget, making a plan as to what I wanted to get etc, I got down to business! I had found a few gift shops and 100yen shops on my previous trip into town and knew of where to find a couple of others so first stop was a 100 yen shop in one of the big shopping centres where I bought a few gifts as well as a couple of practical items, then I went back down to the Shimatori which is like a mall, I found a sock shop and started messaging Charlotte about socks, we were sending messages back and forth and I was taking photo’s of socks to send to her until we decided on what she wanted.. I’m sure the shop assistants thought I was mad or rude or both but I ended up spending a fair bit there so hopefully they are ok with it! As I left the sock shop I saw a temporary stall across the mall which had some Samurai type outfits etc for sale so I thought this might be the place to get the gift I had in mind for James. It turned out they didn’t really have anything so I was walking away when the guy behind the counter gave me a flyer for their main store. In it I saw exactly what I had been looking for so I went back over to him and asked about it. It turned out he spoke very good english so he explained to me where the shop was and gave me a map, told me which tram to catch and which stop to hop off at, and then rang the store to tell them I was coming. He said it would be better if I could wait awhile and go after 1pm so I kept wandering down the Shimatori looking at other shops. Before I knew it I had gone all the way to the end and I figured looking at the map that I was halfway there so maybe I should just walk the rest of the way. I was trying to get my bearings to determine if I was where I thought I was so I asked a guy standing nearby for directions… turned out he didn’t speak Japanese (even though he looked Japanese) and he was actually a german tourist only in Kumamoto for a day! I decided to trust my instinct and the map the guy had given me and wandered off. I did find the shop although it was a bit further than I expected, bought the gift I was looking for, and decided this time I would catch the tram back to where I was. I was pretty sure I was on the right side of the tram track’s but just wanted to be sure so I decided to ask the lady sitting with her baby at the tram stop.. it turned out she was deaf and couldn’t help… I’m thinking the universe is telling me to have a bit more self belief because both times I didn’t really need help, I was just second guessing myself! Anyway, I caught the right tram, back in to the Shimatory, had some lunch and did a little bit more gift shopping before grabbing some groceries and heading back to the dojo.
I had only been back at the dojo for a few minutes when Sandra looked out the window and saw we had a visitor. Marc Waterfield Sensei is another Canadian who is now living in Kumamoto. It was great to catch up and have a chat with Marc Sensei and he invited us to join him for a little kids class on Saturday afternoon. It sounds like they will be like our little champions ages so I’m looking forward to some games and fun with them. The second half of the class is playing in the giant playground near the dojo! Who wouldn’t want to do that!!
This evenings class was a women’s class with Minowa Sensei. When Sensei arrived she invited us to go star gazing on Saturday night after the kids class. We also had a quick visit from Tanaka Sensei before class started. He has invited us to be part of a demonstration at a senior centre next Monday. Monday is a public holiday here celebrating the elderly.
The class started with Kihon’s as usual and then we broke up and Sensei Sandra worked on Kusanku with her partner and I worked on Tenshin with my partner for the second half.

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With Marc Waterfield Sensei

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Sandra and Marc Sensei

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Me with the ladies from tonights class

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Sandra and I with Minowa Sensei

Day 3 Wed 10th Sept

Today was a big day. For some reason I didn’t sleep very well at all Tuesday night and so it was a big day on very little sleep… gotta love those! We were up early for training with Soke Sensei. This morning was a little different from traditional morning training. We did some partner work focusing on shime and strength in our stance as we were stepping with resistance from our partner. I need to work alot on my breathing and shime I am finding. The woodne floors here are really slippery and while it makes suriashi really easy it also shows up the holes in my Shime and posture. My stances are still a bit all over the place as I adjust. We then did some rinten, rinten hanten, shiko dachi etc with the bo on our shoulders aiming to keep it flat as the body turns and also with the bo behind the hips aiming getting a fast spin the stop sharp without letting the bo wiggle back and forth. Next we did some speed kicking and full length of the dojo with kihon dosa San- I think the biggest thing for me here is just to do more of it, try to relax and get faster. Also from the evening class Todd Sensei gave me some feedback on breathing which will help this area of my training.
We finished morning training a few minutes early as Minowa Sensei was due to pick us up at 8.30am. A quick Souji, freshen up and get changed and we were off on our day’s adventure.
Minowa Sensei and her friend Tomiko picked up and we headed off to Mt Aso for the day. Aso is one of the largest active Volcano’s in Japan. It is constantly emitting steam and gasses which mean’s sometimes it it too dangerous to go near the vrater because the toxic gasses are too thick. Unfortunately this was the case today so after a quick group selfie in the carpark (as you do) we jumped back in the car and headed down the mountain to the Aso Museum. The museum has lot’s information about the Aso region and Volcano’s. The entire area was once a huge mountain range until there was a massive Volcanic eruption causing the ground for 100 miles around to collapse in on itself forming a massive crater which then formed a lake. Over the next few million years the current volcanos formed in the centre of the massive caldera. The valley floor in the middle of the caldera and around the base of the volcanos is now rich farming land which produces some fantastic produce.
After the Museum we went into Aso to visit the Shrine and then found some lunch. As many of you probably know, I am a coeliac and finding food I could eat in Japan was one of my biggest worries but Minowa Sensei has been fantastic, she did some research so she knew what was ok and helped find a place where we could all eat and ordered for me. Lunch was great- it was a little one man show, the Chef cooked, took orders, seated guests, served and cleared away the plates afterwards, and considering how busy the place was, he did it all in exceptional time!
After lunch we were headed off to an Onsen, but not before stopping off for Ice-Cream.. Tomika San loves her Soft cream!
The Kurokawa Onsen was amazing, it is a massive complex (we may or may not have become lost as we went back to the car!) Like a little village of its own full of lots of different Onsen and Ryokan and shops etc. The onsen we went to was like a natural spring with rock pools.. the water coming out of the ground there is so hot that they have a bowl of boiled eggs out the front that are just sitting in the water! Gotta love those volcanoes nearby hey!  We looked in a few shops on our way back to the car and then started back towards Kumamoto. On the way back we stopped off a few times to sample some of the Aso regions produce, Seet potato at a roadside vegetable stall, Corn on the cob at the Aso lookout where you can see the Caldera wall extending for miles around and the central volcano range off in the distance, dried fruits at another fresh produce/ local crafts shop along the way. All in all it was a fantastic day but also very tiring. Bythe time we got back to the dojo we had missed the kids class so wehad a bit of a rest before the adult class.
The adult class was taken by Todd Sensei, who is a canadian living in Japan. He was a wealth of information and gave me heaps of great feedback. I seem to be finding a bit of a theme in my training… breath and relax the top half, focus more on the bottom half. We did lot’s of kihon’s, basic punchng, stepping, kihon dosa and kihon kata etc at speed then had a drink break and came back for our own paced kata time. After we had all finished all the kata we knew we broke down Bassai and looked at it in more detail. I would love to have a session with Todd Sensei focussed solely on the bunkai behind the moves we do in kata.. not just the punching, blocking bunkai we do but the real, traditional purpose behind the moves, like gouging eyes and crushing windpipes and all that fun stuff!
After training it was a shower, food and bed for this little duck although as is usually the cse, I didn’t feel nearly as exhausted after training as I did before. I love how Karate fuels my body.

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Corn at a roadside lookout

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Group Selfie at Mt Aso

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After training tonight

Day Two. Tues 9th Sept

Well what an eventful day it has been. We had the morning off training this morning so were able to have a more relaxed start to the day. I did some washing… we are still having trouble understanding the controls on the washing machine but everything comes out clean so we must be doing something right! and had breakfast before heading in to town again to look around for some gifts. I decided to walk in because it was a lovely morning and still not too hot. On the way I met a lovely Japanese man who saw me walking along with my pale skin and freckles and somehow knew I wasn’t local. He greeted me with a huge cheery “Good Morning!’. We spoke for a little while as he practiced his English about how long it takes to get to Japan from Australia on a plane and what the weather is like at home. He asked me if I spoke Japanese and I replied that I was here for a Karate training trip and I could speak ‘ Karate japanese’! Mae Geri, Yoko Geri, tski… he laughed at that! We said our goodbyes and I continued on my way. I had a few grocery items to pick up and I wanted to find a 100 Yen shop today, I did that and grabbed a few things but before I knew it it was time to head back to the dojo as we had arranged with Minowa Sensei to go to a ‘stretching’ class with her at 12.30. I decided to catch the tram and train back which went very smoothly and was essentially uneventful. The train was a cool green frog train- alot of the public transport here is painted with cute characters and they change depending of the festivals and things that might be happening at the time. I got back and had some lunch and then we headed off with Minowa Sensei. On the way we stopped to pick up a friend, Tomoko. Tomoko turned out to be a hilariously funny lady and we spent the rest of the afternoon laughing.
Stretching class started out pretty straight forward, lots of range of motion and stretching as you would expect, then we started to play some fun games that were all about co-ordinating the two sides of your body doing different things (like the old rub your tummy and pat your head thing). This soon had me lying on the floor in tears of laughter! Next we separated into two grups and randomly linked hands in the middle and then had to try to untangle our group.. great teamwork exercise! After a quick break it was time for dancing…. wait… what??? Yes we heard right… dancing! Talk about getting out of your comfort zone! But the ladies there were all so lovely and we were having such a great time so why not.. by the end of the session we were comletely on top of it… Isn’t that right Sandra??! By the end of the class we were eager to come back for more next week. Note to self… must buy toe socks for next week.
On the way home we stopped of for some ice-creams, we had earned them after all that dancing, and made plans to meet tomorrow for a trip to Mt Aso. I’m really looking forward to this as I have been twice but never got to see the actual crater for various reasons. Fingers crossed tomorrow it wont be too gassy for tourists. A little known fact about me is that before I had kids I was studying geology at Uni, largely because of my fascination with Volcanos and tectonic activity.
Training tonight was lots of fun Goshi Sensei and Naoyuki Sensei both came with all of their families, there were lot’s of kids and lots of black belts. We all did some training together and played a game together and then broke up into smaller groups. i was instructing a couple of young orange belt boys. Sensei asked me to teach them in english so we had a bit of fun with that!
After training we played around and chatted for awhile then said our goodbyes. It’s getting pretty late now and we have a big day and early start tomorrow so I had best be off to bed

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Is the happy little green train we catch into the city centre

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The wonderful women in our stretching/dance class

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My training buddies

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Sandra and I with the evening class