Know Nanyang?

[ShaolinDan]

Hey, anyone been to Nanyang? It's a city in Henan, maybe 30 miles from Shaolin.

What are your impressions? What about kung fu?
Could possibly get a TEFL job there--my impression is it's not really where I want to be in China, but I'm open to discovering otherwise.

[TAO YIN]

Dan,

Nanyang is not bad. It is easy To get around Henan from there, you can find some of the comforts of home at a few supermarkets, and well...

Henan is friendly if you get out there and make the most of it. It is a different place there for sure, and you would be much more of a novelty there than in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, and the like.

Nanyang has good Fu, most places in Henan do, you just have to check around. A good thing to do, anywhere in China, is to go to the parks and major walking streets, riverside walks, and basically anywhere people congregate, in the very early mornings and right after sunset...No matter where you go, you will eventually find people practicing in these places. If you see something you like, strike up a conversation, it could lead to some good training. Listen for the sound of bullwhip cracks in the morning, those can lead to people training. Also, check with police. They usually know of well known masters and some will train also.

You can find Kung fu in China with very minimal effort. You can find good Kung Fu in China with a little more. And the great takes a little while to come by.

What are you looking for exactly? Why do you want to live in China?

[rett]

A lot of cities in Henan have a very... I don't know how to say it... peasant feel about them. This could get wearisome for a foreigner staying an extended time. Does NanYan have a more modern city center? Is it a university town? I think I remember hearing about someone studying nursing there.

[ShaolinDan]

Thanks for the replies, guys. I guess my first impression of Nanyang was as Rett described, but it's good to hear a more positive perspective. I'll keep looking into it.

I've been working as a cook for the last ten years, it's time for a change. I got TEFL certified because it's the fastest, surest road to teaching job I could come up with. Also if I end up not enjoying teaching in a classroom, at least I'll get a trip out of it.

Why China? Well, kung fu of course. I'm pretty sure I enjoy teaching kung fu, and would like to have a school if I ever really become qualified to teach. I know that no matter where or what kung fu I study in China, it will look good on my kung fu resume.

[TAO YIN]

Dan,

I forgot to mention, Nanyang is not 30 miles from Shaolin. It is further South. But the long distance trains stop there. Actually, it is between Shaolin and Wudang on the train line. Cool.

Nanyang is a wealthier city in Henan. I would put it second to Zhengzhou though I have not researched that. In my opinion Nanyang is cleaner than Zhengzhou.

Henan is a very poor province in China, one of the smallest, and one of the most densely populated. It's the heart of China, they say, where it all began...Don't know about that. If you go anywhere outside of money cities in China, or let me go one further and say money streets in China, you can easily find a peasant feel.

Henan is in the process of being completely restructured from the ground up, it seems everywhere, but then again so is China.

In any case, I always enjoyed Henan especially getting out of the cities of it and seeing stuff. Most teachers stay away from Henan, Gansu, Anhui, Qinghai, and a few other places, so I guess these places are the best to go. More traditional China, or whatever.

[rett]

I like Henan as well and enjoy trips out of the cities. But I've only stayed for about a month or so at a time. I just think a person should know what to expect if they plan on staying several years. In my case, I think I just don't have what it would take. It would wear me down.

I remember a couple of years back some journalists came up from Shanghai to do some interviews at Shaolin and in the surroundings. They looked pampered and weak to us, which is probably how we looked to the Chinese students. They seemed genuinely surprised to find westerners living at a village school and asked us odd questions like what there was to do in the evenings. Um, sleep? They were very concerned with finding entertainment and a tasty dinner. They really seemed to think we lived in the utter boonies, and almost felt sorry for us, but we were used to life there. Walking 1km to the convenience store and avoiding getting run over or bit by a dog was more than enough excitement. In any case there are much poorer villages if you drive a bit farther from Deng Feng.

[bawang]

the poor villages have the real chinese spirit. i dont even consider the degenerate shanghaiese as human.

if you go to china to learn kung fu definitely go to a village. it will make you see chinese people differently and give them real respect, and see in a different light. it might make a man out of you. and its actually safer from disease than the big cities btw.

[ShaolinDan]

Thanks guys. All good stuff to know. I'd been thinking I'd start in a city for my first year, and then try something more rural after I was more capable of getting around myself in China, especially speaking (assuming I want to continue living in China after the first year). But I'll give some serious thought to starting somewhere more 'backwater.'

Can you really find good kung fu anywhere in China? I've been making a point to look for jobs in places where I know there is a kung fu school-- Is this totally unnecessary?

[TAO YIN]

Dan,

Being in a "backwater" to most is not having many Western luxuries as far as food, night life, friends, and etc...You can get around China by simply pointing...

I have met people in China who have lived there for years and cannot speak anything beyond the most basic Chinese. If you go to a "backwater" and immerse yourself in it, you will learn a great deal more than going to a Cosmopolitan place.

On your Kung fu question, this depends on what you want to learn and how serious you are about it. Do you want Northern or Southern Kung Fu? What exactly are you looking for? Also, a very important question IMO, do you want to learn Mandarin, or Cantonese, or Hakka, or?? My point being that you would probably not fair well learning something like White Eyebrow in Harbin. Probably not a good idea to go looking for Northern Mantis in Guilin.

Good Kung Fu is common in China. Great Kung Fu takes some time to find unless you know exactly what you are looking for. And, as far as the best, well these types probably don't teach because they are either in the Army or working for the police, or farm in some far off place that takes ages to get to, or are retired and could care less.

This goes without saying but do your research for what you want. Check out the Kung Fu there and around, the climate, and whatever is important to you for your adventure. I have seen a year in China seem like a moment to some, and I have seen it turn into forever nightmares for others. Look before you leap kind of a deal.

[bawang]

it only feels better in the cities because you will be fawned over by rich posh chinese. if you are wanting to train in china, its because you want something more. something you cannot gain here at home. you want to gain the warrior spirit, or maybe experience a purer spiritual lifestyle. the cities and large famous "conveyor belt" schools are not going to provide that, although some may pretend otherwise.

[ShaolinDan]

Haha. That's good.

Actually, I'm way past all that--I'm going to China to start my teaching career. As long as I'm going abroad to teach, I might as well make it China and put a big gold star on my kung fu resume. I'm not looking for a magical kung fu experience, or a spiritual awakening--I'm looking to stop living a life of grueling labor and poverty.

[ShaolinDan]

kind of ironic now that I think about it.

[bawang]

that sounds good man, im glad you have the right attitude.

for southern kung fu i definitely recommend wenzhou boxing in zhejiang province. that region contains the oldest styles of southern kung fu pre dating white crane. they have remained totally unchanged and unaffected by modern age, definitely living fossils. they are very focused on muscle though.

for northern kung fu the styles i know are really ugly and simple, i cant recommend any you would like so you should probably look for shaolin kung fu in henan province.

[ShaolinDan]

Thanks man.

[YouKnowWho]

As long as I'm going abroad to teach, I might as well make it China and put a big gold star on my kung fu resume.

A good friend of mine went to China to study Taiji and came back with bad knee. Just be careful.