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Thread: I miss Okinawa

  1. #1
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    Default I miss Okinawa

    Ten of the best years of my life were spent on the beautiful island of Okinawa. I miss it soo much.
    Ricky Wood

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    Default Missing the Rock

    Ricky san:

    What period were you there and if you trained who with?

    Thanks.

    Andy Morris
    Delmar, NY USA

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    Quote Originally Posted by ryukyu2000
    Ricky san:

    What period were you there and if you trained who with?

    Thanks.

    Andy Morris
    Delmar, NY USA
    From 1988 to 1998.
    I trained under Iwao Yamaguchi Sensei of Okinawa Aikikai.
    Ricky Wood

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    Default Aikido and Okinawa arts

    Rick,

    I am very interested in the relationship between Aikido and Karate in Okinawa, and how the likes of Seikichi Uehara and his Motobu Udun Ti was perceieved by the Aikido community and the link between the Seitoku Higa's Bugeikan and the Aikido that is taught there. Do you have any knowledge of this?

    Regards
    Chris Norman

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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Woody
    Ten of the best years of my life were spent on the beautiful island of Okinawa. I miss it soo much.
    Just yesterday morning while sitting at this PC and thinking about the time I spent on Okinawa I too miss it in a way. Memories of the island are now very foggy since I left there in July 1962. Wow, I can hardly count than far back!

    I did lots of Judo there and some karate too. Wonder where all my Budo friends and sensei are now. Hum, my two karate sensei have passed on.

    Yeah, it is so long ago I would not even recognize it. That's the good thing about never going back to a plac, you always have the same fond memories.

  6. #6
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    Default Aikido and Karate

    I begain Yoshinkan Aikido in Okinawa in 1994 after having been a Shorinryu Ni Dan since 1988. About half the students in the Aikido class were Karate Yudansha. When someone threw a punch it was a good idea to be able to flow with the movement. All of that experience really added to the class in my opinion. On the other hand most like myself also left after a period of time as there are only so many hours in the day and we had found our first love in an art other than Aikido. Also many people wanted the experience in Aiki to better understand their Karate and were not intending to become high ranking Aikidosei.

    The classes tend to focus on what the teacher is teaching. They are aware of other groups around, in fact Senaha Sensei's main teacher is Kai Sensei who is well advanced in Goju, Judo, Iaido, Jodo, and Shodo and often mixes some Kyusho into his atemi waza. Unfortunately he was in Kyushu most of the time so I rarely was able to see him teach. Other than what Kai Sensei was doing though most Karate ka will use a soft art to better understand their bunkai and some Aikido sei will explore Karate to improve their atemi waza. Not much is done with Uchinan Di in regards to the two Aikido groups I have observed here on the island. Others may be more open to the idea of mixing but I am not aware of any.

    Honestly most westeners are more open to cross training than most Japanese. Of course that is a general statement and there are exceptions to the rule but tradition and keeping things uniform have stronger reverberations here than most other places in the world.
    Yours in budo.

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    Quote Originally Posted by TimJurgens
    I begain Yoshinkan Aikido in Okinawa in 1994
    There was an aikido class that trained at the Okinawa Prefectural Budokan facility. Often times we would take "half" the mat space and the other aikido class would take the other "half." I'm not sure if they were Yoshinkan or not. Was that you?
    Ricky Wood

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    Default Yoshinkan

    Yes it was.

    Sometimes there was a Jujitsu club that would train in the middle as well.
    Yours in budo.

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    What a beautiful facility the Budokan is. Have seen nothing like it since returning to America.
    Ricky Wood

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    Default Agreed and even more interesting was how it was used

    It was gratifying to see so many different classes going on at the same time. Most places people's egos will not allow them to share a public floor like that. I have seen a guy teaching 2 people on a basket ball court run off a group of other people who wanted to train because he had the floor reserved. It has happened to me in fact. I have never begrudged somone else a spot on the floor if they want to train even if I am teaching a class. If they can do something better than me then I ask them to show it to the class. My friend Rob Rousselout can attest to that fact.

    I figure we are all trying to get better each session so why would I deny someone an opportunity to improve themselves, or possibly improve me?
    Yours in budo.

  11. #11
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    At one time, Okinawa Aikikai shared floor space with a ballroom dance class.
    Ricky Wood

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    Default

    You can return to Okinawa in a keystroke.

    Check out www.OkinawaBBTV.com

    It's superb.
    Victor Smith
    Bushi No Te Isshinryu
    www.funkydragon.com/bushi

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    Thanks for the link Victor!
    Ricky Wood

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    Default

    Ah bugger. I read the title of this thread to be 'Miss Okinawa'... thought there was a beauty contest on.
    Scott Halls
    Hyoho Niten Ichi Ryu Kenjutsu - Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu Iai
    兵法二天一流剣術 - 無双直伝英信流居合

  15. #15
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    Default

    Well Scott,

    If you search out OkinawaBBTV you'll see they do beach interviews with young women.

    Which of course is only something Okinawans might do I guess?

    Perhaps it will help tide you over.

    Either that or the Okinawn Rock.
    Victor Smith
    Bushi No Te Isshinryu
    www.funkydragon.com/bushi

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