Dominik from Germany sharing his experience training at the Yuntai Mountain School in China.
I would like to share some experiences in different areas.
My journey to China
When I arrived, the YTS Pickup was already waiting for me after a 2-hour wait. In the evening at 9 o’clock, I went to the parking garage with a ‘stranger’ and got into his car. He couldn’t speak English or German, so it felt a bit strange. However, I was confident that I would arrive safely. Shifu Yuan welcomed me very warmly, and I immediately had a super positive feeling that I had arrived at the right place.
City life
I was warned about culture shock, and it turned out to be true. How people drive cars here, the safety when driving scooters or cars, how people behave, and how busy they are. I find the vehicles quite interesting and how loaded people are with some of them. When I went exploring in the city, I was greeted kindly by many people, and some wanted to take photos, mostly girls. I even received gifts like a drink or grilled beans on a skewer, and they wanted to add me on WeChat.
School life
I noticed that the kids here have a busy schedule from early in the morning at 6:30 until late at night, around 10 p.m. The kids I have met so far are all super nice. I would love to be able to have better conversations with them since I am surrounded by the kids during breaks and try to communicate with some of them. There is a half day off and a full day off during the week, which is enough if you come here for training.
Food
The food tastes good, and there is plenty of vegetarian food, which is supposed to be vegan as well. In the cities, there are also some options for shopping if you want to buy more fruit or other things. In the selected restaurants of Yuan Shifu, the food tastes even better, and it is always a great and abundant experience.
Training
When I arrived, I was very weak and had no stamina since I am a beginner in sports. The training is not a piece of cake, and I regularly push myself beyond my limits. I had never sweated during training before, but now I sweat everywhere. The powerstretching is also great, especially with the help of one or two others. The results can be seen in a short time. Yuan Shifu is truly an excellent trainer, and I can’t imagine a better one. He not only has the necessary training experience but also a unique personality. He is very humble, funny, and extremely powerful. During training, he demonstrates “The way of training” so that one can train themselves and pay attention to everything important, such as warm-up and stretching.
Excursion
So far, we have taken a trip to the Shaolin Temple. It was excellently planned by Shifu Yuan, and we had a lot of fun. Food, good spirits, and good weather were present. The hike up to the statue, with many stairs, was very challenging, but it was more than worth it for the view. I also found the Shaolin Show spectacular.
These memories and experiences will last a lifetime, and I am extremely grateful for them. I feel very alive here.
