By Kunming South of the Clouds
China
China is one of the last great countries of mystery to many people in the Western world. With its famous closed door policy until the 1980’s and Communist regime, until recently it was a country which was very difficult to get to know.
With the holding of the 2008 Olympiad and its well documented sustained spell of financial growth modern China is now ready to welcome visitors to take a look at all of its achievements. To be here is to be in a country in fast forward. Rapid growth and development abound at breathtaking speeds almost wherever you go. This change sits alongside old temples and streets which in some cases have not changed for centuries.
Chinas modern ability to manufacture goods is now well known but it is within its Traditional Cultures and peoples that the real jewels of this vast land are held. Eastern spiritual practises, beliefs, medicine and ways of life are completely different to those found in the West and it is in these that the real China is still to be seen. There is no better way to experience this knowledge than through the famous Chinese Kung Fu and no better place to visit than Kunming South of the Clouds in Yunnan Province in the South West of China.
Kung Fu & Culture
Unlike Western martial arts its Chinese equivalent emphasises the use of the mind, Qi (vital energy) and spirit to reach the higher levels of practise. In the practise of Kung Fu it is just as important to achieve good health and spiritual enlightenment as it is to defeat an opponent in self defense. With its roots in Buddhism and Daoism the development of these arts were as much in secluded in monastries as battlefields and this is evident by the emphasis on mind development and energy cultivation placed in the training.
Yunnan province is home to 26 of the 56 different ethnic minorities which live within Chinas huge land mass. It borders Laos, Vietnam, Burma and Tibet and has its own very distinct uniqueness when compared to the rest of China. Due to its location it is open to lots of different influences and this is evident in its people, clothing and food. Ranging from Tibetan Buddhism to Thai cuisine many new ideas have been added to make a eclectic mix of smells, sights and sounds.
As China is such a huge place with its own language barriers it is often not easy to find good opportunities to learn real martial arts and other Chinese cultures such as calligraphy, Chinese medicine and Buddhism in a Western friendly location. However Kunming South of the Clouds offer just such a programme based in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan. From here it is also easy to visit the other beautiful areas Yunnan has to offer such as the Stone Forest, Tiger Leaping Gorge, Dali, Lijiang, Shang-ri-la and others. With Kunming being the travel gateway from China to the rest of South East Asia it is also simple to get to here and onto other places like Hong Kong and Bangkok. It is for these reasons along with the very temperate climate that Kunming and Yunnan is home to a large number of Western tourists and residents alike. |
