They went mainly to see how it is the training there and stayed for a while to train and get an additional rank...but that was it....Only a handful of people will go and stay for 15 years in a different country to learn a martial art.
It costs a lot for Japan, not that much in China, (vast differences in the cost of living in this two countries)
Edit:
I have just read the article....Lol!!! The guy thought that he would be going to a place where drinking, smoking and everything else would be banned completely and everybody would wake up at 5,30 in the morning and train all day long until night for years and everybody would be bound by strict rules and get beaten by a stick if they didn't obey...Lol!!!
That is masochism, not training, willing slaves regimes do not exist...Lol!!!
First he should have learned a few things about fitness and how is achieved then he should have learned the word appropriate, then life training balance, and then he could go to the marines or the navy seals...Lol!!!
You don't have to do Kung Fu, I grew up in Vietnam and did TKD. Kung Fu is just another art there isn't much more special about the others except you don't learn them where you usually live.
Edit: I agree. If you go to China, don't get your kidney harvested.
Dont go to china unless you are VERY serious about kung fu. My karate studio had a great idea. If you get in top three on the championships you get a free trip to china to learn kung fu.
Kungfu Family school in Chengdu is a great place where many foreigners are learning all the traditions surrounding Chinese kungfu. You can give this a good read to learn more: http://www.kungfu-family.com/
I've heard a couple mentions of 'If you want to learn genuine Kung Fu, you almost have to go to China' here and there. Now, I'd always assumed that this was a joking metaphor, but I've recently found out that there are people who actually do go to China in order to learn martial arts.
Now, a quick look gives such responses as this article-
http://www.kungfumagazine.com/ezine/article.php?article=931
Which seems to suggest that even if you go to china, and [presumably] pay out the nose for lessons, room and board [In addition to the plane ticket], you're not guaranteed a good education from whatever school you choose.
So, with that background, here's my question- Has anyone here traveled to China in order to learn martial arts?
If so, what school did they go to, how much did it cost, and would they suggest going there to anyone looking to learn traditional martial arts?
If not, what do they think of the idea of just dropping everything for months or even years, and going off to learn Kung Fu?
... As I've lurked a fair bit on here, I have the sinking suspicion that this is going to devolve into a shitstorm quickly, but curiosity demands I ask.
