Yokota AB dojo July 2019

For the first time trained in Japan with other kendoka's, very different from University kendo and Police kendo in Fukuoka, relax but do sweat!
The kendo level was reasonable shodan to sandan it is more recreational kendo, if you may speak in sport terms, recreation - amateur - professional sports 1x to 2x training a week.
Also here no tai-atari like we are used to do in our dojo, but a good positive basic posture (kiso).
Just like football, move to stay in shape until your old day. Practise kendo with fun and after lunch with everyone, for me a lot of drinking.
Mac, KFC, Pizzahut, a lot more tasteful things a paradise for Jonas, just fries with ..... whatever you want. But you can also eat green things for the veggies to stay in shape.

The straightforward kendo like in Saga with the police the speed of University kendo you cannot expect, Jonas and myself have experienced this painfully, the great (violent) men training just go forward and face the ken-saki.
In Saga it was very clear not whine, 2 hours hard practise and no rest to drink water.
After the University of Education for Teachers and the Saga Police it was a very hard switch to do normal kendo with people on a different level.

A good experience and learned a lot, to handle with the situation.

Previous year in the UK I went a little crazy with the yondan kendoka's, I have made no friends was a bit too hard, I hope I have made some friends now.

My thanks fo to Miura sensei, Jim sensei and all the kendoka's of Yokota AB dojo.

Until december, Andre.

University of education for teachers July 2019.

Posted on August 05 2019

Annual Nami Kai trip to Fukuoka.

10 July, the kendo summer training at the University of Education for Teachers has started, a morning training and an evening training, under guidance of Honda sensei former kendo coach of the UK.
This time with a new batch of students, high school kendo is fast and not to keep up with.
Especially the first 3 movements were a lot of time to think, just react.

Thanks to Honda sensei and his wife Yoko that we could again stay at Mokkeiso for the nights.

Andre Raboen.

Charkiv Cup July 2019

Posted on June 21 2019

It's already over, a weekend kendo seminar followed by the international Charkiv Cup.

It's a pity that few countries/dojos participated. Outside of Moldova and its team there were, unfortunately, no other participants. It deserved better.

After years of training, the kendo is on a reasonable level in the former Sovjet countries.