Last weekend was the International Kempo Association’s annual seminar. This year, hosted by Ireland!
We all converged on Dingle, a small town in the south west of the country. Our weekend started with a meal at a local fish restaurant (Dingle is on the coast – they have good fish). It was great to catch up with people I hadn’t seen in a while!
Of course, the main event was Saturday and Sunday, two full days of training. Instruction was given by senior instructors from four different countries. It’s always fun to play spot the difference with the subtleties of how the techniques are done in different places. Sometimes hearing a different explanation can make it click. Plus I picked up some fun new exercises to bring back to our own dojo.
We also enjoyed a special session on some of the more flashy kicks available (you know, the ones that we don’t practice very much because they look pretty but aren’t very practical). Entertaining, yes, but also teaches lessons about balance and how the body moves.
The second special session was on throws – specifically, how to deal with being thrown. We spent a lot of that session upside down. It was fun!
Friday night was not the only social event. Saturday we met for a meal at Dingle’s nicest hotel, and Sunday we went to our host’s house for a sauna and then to a nearby pub where there was an Irish band playing. We even found a local willing to teach us Irish dancing! All in all an excellent way to round out the weekend.
Want to be involved? Find your nearest Shorinji Kempo club here: https://www.bskf.org/locations.html