Hello from Pai,Thailand. 

Pai is a small agricultural town in northern Thailand.  Below are a couple of pictures of the house we are renting and our view of the rice fields from our backyard.  The house also has a 3/4" pipe running from natural hot springs that originate in the hills close to the house. We fill a tub every night for a soak and a bath....all the comforts of home.…

We took this photo at Deception Valley in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve located in Central Botswana. This is a young male who was not quite old enough to challenge for his own pride, but he roared throughout the night, letting the world know of his presence (a bit like teenage boys with their loud cars and stereos.)

The next video was taken about six…

Kora (Hello) from Namibia,

My wife and I are now in Namibia.  While Oregon is settling into the wet and cold, Namibia is heading into the hot and dry.  Hopefully, it will be the hot and wet as the country is in the midst of its worst drought in 30 years.

Fundamentally, life here is the same as life at home. We work, we play, we…

Aside from seeing the amazing wildlife in this country, I have also found great places for outdoor training.

We stayed in Cape Town for a month.  One weekend I hiked up and around Table Mountain.  It was a cool misty day...reminded me of home...great place for a little straight horse stance....the time passes faster when surrounded by great scenery. …

We visited our first Game Park in Botswana.  We were very fortunate to have sighted a leopard, a black mamba, as well as, rhino's, giraffes, wildebeasts, warthogs, and Oryx. 

As I watched these magnificent animals, I was reminded of the fundamental rule of self-defense that applies to the entire animal kingdom: The best way to defend oneself and live to see another day is to avoid the confrontation; hence: Get away, get away, get away.

These animals who could tear me to shreds,…

On our way from Turkey to Africa we spent 3 days in Cairo.  It was a very memorable experience.  The pyramids are awe inspiring when one considers that each block weighs several tons, and there are a couple of million blocks in each pyramid. Couple that with millimeter accuracy in the angles of the sides and the edges from ground to the top, as well as the tight seams between each block, and it makes one realize that while humans have made advancements and discoveries in the last 4 thousand…

This is the Cappadocia region in central Turkey.  It is known for its soft rock that was easily carved out and has been conitnually inhabited for thousands of years.  There are several underground cities, one of which could sustain 15,000 people for several months. The cities were used to hide from invaders.  There were even huge round stones that could be rolled in front of the camaflouged entrances to keep the invaders out.....straight out of Lord of the Rings.…

We are staying in Istanbul. I found a park near our apartment; a great place to do a little triangle drill (need to train to keep the footwork light).  One day I was going through my kicks, and next thing you know there was a young teenage boy beside me.  He started doing the same kicks as I was doing, then he showed me  a "flying front kick?"- obviously something he had…

Our travels have landed us in Turkey.  The Turks are very friendly people. We wish that we could say more than "please,"  "thank you," and "hello." 

The photo is from the ancient city of Ephesus.  This city is rich in history.  It was once the 2nd largest city in the Roman Empire.  The "Marble Road" leading out of town (on the right side of this photo) was once tread upon by the likes of Cleopatra and Marc Antony.

The city is mentioned in the Bible, and the "Grand Theatre" (in…

....guess what is not in any food in italy?........high fructose corn syrup......guess what is not in the milk in Italy......hormones.......nor are there genetically modified foods.  We have also found that there is far less sugar put in the foods here.  Even the pastries, while delicious are not sickly sweet.

Furthermore, when we shop for food everyday at the public market, the fruit and vegetables are ripe.  It is expected that the food is to be eaten soon after being picked. The…

It's now been one month since my wife and I left the US. Training, however, is no different than if we were at home. I work at "home" at a computer all day. My training comes in 10 minute intervals when I take a break from work every 1 1/2 - 2 hours. This usually works out to 3 ten minute workouts, or 30 minutes/day. I couple this with an hour walk around the city (currently Florence)everyday with Bobbi. Training is more sporadic on traveling days, but we will be here for the next two…

Short but sweet.

1)  1 1/2 hour climbing.

2)  Lead leg kicks: Wheel, Front, Side:  10 each both legs

3)  Spinning Kicks: Heel, Crescent, Wheel:  5 each both legs

4)  Straight horse stance:  2 rounds; 1 minute per round

5)  Downhill trail running:  short steps; knees bent- great awareness training , as fall or trip would have had serious consequences- the too fast descent.

6) Back at casa:  30 push-ups.

Last Thursday evening Mr. Bronson asked me to lead class as part of my learning and development.....what an exercise....as much for the grey matter as the rest of the muscles. 

It would have been nice to have been notified beforehand so that I could have prepared.........hmmm.....it also would be nice to be notified beforehand that someone is going to attack you so that you can prepare yourself.

Such was the secondary benefit of this training exercise....training the brain to…

Great training day...beautiful sunny day; a little trail running in Grand Teton National park; 30 push-ups; walking on fallen timber for fun and balance training; straight horse stance on fallen timber; 20 crunches on log (not recommended); 1 minute straight blast; 1 minute straight punching; wheel kicks in the sagebrush; and finish with 20 minutes Chi Kung with the sun on my back and my face to the peaks.

..Just a quick little observation I had today.  I am staying at a friend's house in Salt Lake City; beautiful house at the base of the mountains.  Like many expensive homes these days, it is a big house built on a small lot.  This means that the occupants are meant to spend most of their time indoors, not outdoors. There is, of course, a huge outdoor deck so that the occupants can enjoy being outside.  But, when one is on the deck are they truly being outside; are…

Well, the figurative 2'x4' finally hit me on the head, and I had a long overdue epiphany: This school is demanding and Sifu Bronson demands a lot from us.

When I first attended the school I thought that 2x a week in the classroom under the ASP system ( "A" for accelerated was the operative word) would be sufficient to acquire the fundamental skills to achieve black belt in 5-7 years........not so, I  now know.

Unlike academic schools that test on a subject then move on to the…

I watched a documentary last night called Shaolin Ulyssis. It was about several Shaolin monks who emigrated to the U.S. in the late 1990's to start schools that taught Kung Fu and Buddism.  Their martial arts were stunning. Their words of wisdom reiterated what Sifu Bronson teaches.  The following are some of the things that struck home:

1)  At their Shaolin temples in China they practiced 8 hours a day. They said how difficult it was to  teach their students in the U.S. with…

At the end of class this Thursday evening, Mr. Bronson spoke of the many aspects of self defense. i.e. fueling the body; protecting one's emotional state; controlling one's mental state; all vitally important to defending the complete self.

"How times a day do you stab yourself?" This was the specific rhetorical and hopefully figurative question Mr. Bronson queried that caught my attention and made me realize my progress in practicing Kung Fu.

When I first came into the school,…

Thursday evening's class was a quality workout; sucking wind and sweat. What made the drills more effective was getting the lead out of my feet. The beginning of class I felt like I was a walking in a diving bell suit. But after we were instructed to step into the cross punch instead of lunging forward, the light bulb went off and I realized that my feet were dragging, and thereby leaving me out of position and off balance...not good for me.....very good for my opponent.

When the…

The Mountain Warrior Kung Fu Academy is the school from which one never graduates. This is good. For if the student never graduates but always attends, the pupil willl always gain knowledge. Knowledge is power.

Knowledge, however, has no loyalty. It will abandon you if you ignore it. Knowledge must be coraled and utilized. The more knowledge that one acquires, the more time and disciplined sheparding one must exercise to hold on to the knowledge.............in other words; If you…