Hey... gotta question...

[JustChecking]

What's up with this??

This thread

I've thought about giving Wah Lum a go, but what's with the political bickering about a school head by a student & is it really cheaper to study in China with a Shaolin Monk than in Florida?

[SaMantis]

Hi JustChecking,

On the prices: go to www.wahlum.com and select the Program Description: Live-In Training for a list of current prices. Then you can compare them to the costs of training in China with a Shaolin monk.

On training WL: If you're a beginner, ignore the politics, just go and train. Every style has internal politics, they increase exponentially with the size of the system.

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At the very least, check out an actual WL school during your search for a martial arts school. Compare the real thing and take all the web-fu with a grain of salt.

[Three Harmonies]

SAMantis,
While I would not argue that every STYLE has politics, I certainly would argue that every school does/should. Politics are a bull**** smoke screen for peoples insecurities, and their subsequent inability to deal with those insecurities in a mature fashion. If one is a beginner and you are already aware of politics WITHIN the school, avoid IMO! We have no politics in my school (note I am not saying style, I can only control so much ), and if their is a problem it is voiced and taken care ASAP.
Unfortunately a lot of the Wah Lum students and teachers have lived within this "political atmosphere" for so long they naturally assume that is how every school is. I say with sadness, that they are wrong, and things do not need to be that way.
My 2 cents.
Cheers
Jake

[SaMantis]

Well I can't argue with that!

I can say we have a very good group in Boston, pretty small but the politics do not trickle down to the students. A great deal of the stuff I hear about comes from online forums.

I agree, if politics affect your training as a beginner, that is a bad thing.

[sayloc]

It appears that the wah lum system has thousands of people involved in the U.S.

I would be very surprised if there wernt any political problems.

Can anyone name any type of organization with thousands of people involved (It doesnt have to be martial arts) that does not have any internal grumbling?

It is easier to keep a school of 50 people happier than one with thousands.

Have a good day.

[18elders]

There are less expensive ways to train in china than with a shaolin monk.
I have heard horror stories of people going to train at shaolin, paid alot and didn't get much.
Seek out a real master in china and train with them, be less expensive.

As for wah lum live in training, if Master Chan is retired, who teaches these people?
I would consider that in how much you are paying,. I think $1100 a month is high but that is just me.

[sayloc]

I just heard a story of a person who went to China to study "traditional kung fu" for a very high price. I think the person was there for a few weeks and all they did were things like push ups, sit ups and running. Almost no martial arts.

Long trip for nothing.

[Hua Lin Laoshi]

That student is running off at the mouth when he should be respecting his kung fu elders. I can't imagine his Sifu condoning such conduct.

If he knew anything at all he would know that only Master Chan Pui can issue Instructor Certificates.

Don't go by second hand misinformation. Want to kknow something then go to the source.

[Brad]

I think it's difficult to find truly high quality training in China (especially cheaper than you'd get it here) without knowing someone who can hook you up. Lots of people looking to scam foriegners or just provide a brief kungfu fantasy experience.

[18elders]

let me know what your interested in. I have good contacts in china

[yu shan]

Not sure which school in Florida you are interested in. But by all means, visit a WL school. It might just be what you are looking for. This live in training has produced some pretty darn good quality. True, the price to me is high, but if you are taught at an excellarated rate, could be good. I`d check out the dorm facility if I were you...

Do you have an education? I mean, can you offer something if you were to go overseas? 18 Elders and myself know good contacts in Asia. If you are young, all I can say is, go for it! When you get old like me, moving to Taiwan or China is out of the question. For those who have a Shifu, make sure you have your teachers blessing first, before you plan on training elsewhere.

If your interested in WL, ignore all the c r a p, just go see for yourself.

[sayloc]

I think if I were to train overseas I believe one of the guys I would try to train with would be Master Shr zheng zhong (sp?) in Taiwan.

For two reasons. First, going by all of the info to the forums and on the web he really seems to know his stuff. His bio listing all of the masters he trained under is fantastic.

Second, Taiwan just seems to be a cleaner and nicer place to visit. Some place I would like to take the family.

I also would rather spend my money in Taiwan than Communist China.

(Sorry for the poitics Bei)

Back to the thread, all systems have politics. The big ones just have more people on forums It goes along with the old saying that "if you dont screw up once in a while you must not be doing anything".


Yushan,

you are right about checking with your sifu about training. I just kicked a guy out yesterday for something similar, and am giving another guy two weeks to clean up his act or he is out.