My name is Bruno Broothaerts, and I live in Dendermonde, Belgium. I have been training at this school for seven months and have had an incredibly intense and wonderful experience.
The training sessions require your full concentration and a positive mindset. You learn Kung Fu, Tai Chi and Sanda, and train for around seven to eight hours a day, including one hour of free training. To prepare yourself, you should already have a reasonable level of stamina, strength, speed and flexibility. Before coming here, I trained for about four hours a day and worked hard on improving these aspects. In my opinion, preparation is essential if you want to avoid suffering too much during your first week here. Believe me!
You need a lot of energy and perseverance. I had both, but despite being highly motivated, I still got injured and was unable to walk for quite some time. So be careful not to push yourself too hard. Listen to your body and don’t force things!
The trainers here are very competent, strict, energetic and motivating. They are also genuinely lovely people, with big hearts. They help you in every situation and are incredibly patient. That is especially important because I needed a lot of time to learn new techniques. I wasn’t particularly technically gifted, so teaching me took quite a bit of time and patience. But that’s exactly why you are here: to learn.
As for life at the school, I can say that the atmosphere is fantastic. The fellow students, Shifus, teachers, children and all the other staff members are very friendly. Stress is practically unknown at this school – except perhaps when you have to get out of bed for the bell at 5:50 am! For me, getting out of bed was not always easy. You quickly make friends here, and before long they become like family. There is a genuine family atmosphere, which made my stay so enjoyable. Everyone respects one another, and there is also plenty of fun both during and outside training.
I personally found the food delicious. Every day, they serve something different, usually with rice or noodles. On your days off, you have the opportunity to buy things such as oats, fruit juice, milk, fruit, cakes and many other products that you can also find in Europe.
The rooms at the school are reasonable – not luxurious, but you cannot really expect that when you come here to practise Kung Fu and experience a more traditional way of life. The dining room is also perfectly adequate. Overall, I find the school a pleasant place to stay.
The area around the school is very quiet. It is an old village where there isn’t much going on in winter, but it becomes livelier in summer. There are mountains just behind the school, where I occasionally went for a walk to relax or to get some walking in as part of my training.
During your free time, there are plenty of things to do. I often went out with my friends to explore the town, visit nice Chinese shops, walk around or go swimming. In short, it was a great way to relax. I found this free time very important for finding a good balance, relaxing and enjoying good food – especially in the dining area!
I think I have covered almost everything, and hopefully you now have a better idea of what the school is like. The most important advice I can give you is to know why you are here, never give up and give it your best. Embrace the team spirit: together, you are stronger in training. For example, during strength training, we all encouraged one another because it was extremely tough. We knew we had to get through it together, and that made all the difference. That is what this experience is all about! It is also an opportunity to develop yourself, find balance, relax and become a better person. In short, this place can make you feel happier and more complete.
France · nearly 6 months 
Germany · 3 months 
Switzerland · 5 weeks 
New Zealand · 3 months 
