Student Experiences (Jarl Lundin Jensen)




　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　05.2005-07.2005

Before you go:
Have a list of phone numbers with you, you probably don't speak any Chinese so if you end up in trouble be sure to have the number of your country's embassy, if you have a travel insurance you must also have this number with you. Finally the schools number so you can call them if there is a change of plans, and you want to be picked up at Yantai station at another time.
There are two ways from Beijing to YanTai : train and plane.

Daily life:
The first class starts at 6:20, it is Tai Chi class or/and Chi Kung class. Before this class the masters will expect you to run a short run, to get some stiffiness out of the leg muscles.
You must be back and have a relaxed heartbeat for the 6:20
class.
After this class there is breakfast at 7.00. The school provides eggs, hot water and Chinese bread. I just don't like Chinese bread (no offence to the cook), so I eat loads of "add only water" porridge, dried soy milk is actually better than it sounds. I recommend that you in the season go down to the main road outside Kun Yu shan and buy fruit, the fruit sellers will love you and you will love me for extra carbonhydrates when you have to train from 8:30 to
11:30.
This class starts with 10 minutes of running for warm up in front of the school. With a small dog annoying you each day, happily thinking that he makes you run. After the run there is leg stretching, I thought a lot about it while doing it, and I think that this is the exercise we do the most and important. We do that for up to 10 minutes and then up in the training hall for a complete body stretching and warm up.

The days differ in that Monday you do basics & forms in the morning and Sanda in the afternoon; Tuesday its jumps in the morning and break-fall and Chin Na in the afternoon,
Wednesday its basics and forms in the morning and Sanda (kicking pats) in the afternoon; Thursday is basics and entertainment in the morning and bodybuilding in the afternoon; Friday is painful but result giving "power-stretching" in the morning and endurance practice in the afternoon (all the above is just the training of shaolin kungfu).
There is a break in class from 10.00-10.30, on Mondays this corresponds with basics before break and forms afterwards.

Lunch is 12:00 and is both plentiful and good. Because there was a lack of students when I was there I persuaded the cook to make me a
personal bowl of soup each day, I just love soup. Sometimes he serves special stuff, often seafood, I think that is a trademark of Shan Dong's cuisine.
Now it's time to a little grandpa nap.
15:00 Its class till 16:45 or so (this is summer schedule).
18:00 is dinner, same food as for lunch.
After dinner its every man to himself and you can choose Chinese lessons too. Some people often use the computer to watch movies on, sit outside and enjoy the afternoon or to go swimming (there is a pool near the academy) or go for a walk to help digestion.

After a week or so the daily life becomes routine. I'd rather to keep a journal everyday to keep every day's training down which is helpful to the later training.
Always strive for being better, faster and more powerful, that is what in the end will give you the results you want.
Masters will teach the students according to their interest, because some forms are quik and hard (such as Sanda) and some forms are slow and soft (such as Tai Chi and Qigong).
It's not a rigid institution; the masters are actually quite flexible.

Previous martial arts experience:
I came to China with 1 year of 2 times per week kung fu training.
In my opinion the relation between masters and students are friendly and the amount of respect I pay to a fellow student is not measured in how many forms they know, how good their nine dragons flying through purple heaven palace kick is, how much dead weight they can lift or how they fight in sparring. I look at values like how seriously does the student take the training, how focused and disciplined is he. And how does he or she help the other students out(This is the martial morality taught by masters). And in my opinion help can be a
lot of things, instruction is the Shi fu's privilege, but encouragement is the students way to make each other progress faster, and have a better time doing it.

The Author:
My name is Jarl Lundin Jensen. I live in Copenhagen, Denmark
I am 23 years old and study mechanical engineering.
I have had the pleasure of training under master Wei for 6 months in 2002, and nearly 2 months in 2005.

If you have any questions I will happily answer them.
Email: jarl@opusserver.dk