On the last day of February members of The University of Southampton’s Shorinji Kempo club flew half way around the world for what is becoming an annual trip to the world headquarters of our martial art, Japan. Although the four-day training seminar was located in a small town on Shikoku, the smallest of Japan’s four main islands, there was still plenty of time to take in the sights and culture of the country.

Arriving in Kansai early Saturday morning, we took the short train journey to Kyoto where we would begin our ten-day trip. The first weekend was spent site-seeing around Kyoto, taking in numerous temples as well as Nijo Castle with the famous ‘nightingale floor’ and sampling some local delicacies; green-tea flavoured ice cream was not a hit, but the sushi was fantastic, as were the alcohol vending machines strategically situated close to our hostel. The litre cans of beer and two litre cartons of sake available went down perhaps a little too well for some! 

Monday saw us heading down to Shikoku with a stop-off at Himeji Castle, famous for appearing in The Last Samurai and the James Bond film You Only Live Twice. After spending a rather cold hour wandering around pondering what it would have been like to be a samurai, we caught the shinkansen, or ‘bullet train’, for a high-speed trip to our next train change, which would take us across the Inland Sea to Shikoku.

Our hotel for the week provided an interesting experience in itself, with traditional tatami mat rooms, rollaway futons and Japanese baths. Shoes had to be taken off before entering the hotel and though slippers were provided it soon became apparent that the Japanese are unused to Western-sized feet, as all but a few found slippers that fitted them! Breakfast was another shock to the system, consisting of cold rice and miso soup. By the end of the week people were starting to take their chances with the ‘mystery meat on a stick’ from the nearby supermarket rather than face more rice.

Training started bright and early at 8am Tuesday morning, with the main hall of Hombu filled with almost five hundred students, the majority from Japanese universities. There were only twenty Westerners, from France and the Ukraine, and The University of Southampton representing Britain. A typical training day started with cleaning the dojo(s) followed by seated meditation, before we split into our rank groups for technical training for the rest of the day.  

Unfortunately for us Westerners, these were all in Japanese so special training was arranged just for us with some senior instructors, which proved to be one of the highlights of the trip for all. Although the technical training was first class, it wasn’t all serious, as the first-degree black belts discovered the fun of warm-ups to music; punching and kicking to classics such as Carl Douglas’ “Kung Fu Fighting” and Kool & the Gang’s “Celebration”, with routines getting more and more complex as the week wore on! And despite the cold weather – electric heaters were put in the training halls in an attempt to stop our feet freezing – we all had a lot of fun as well as learning so much.

It was with sadness that we said goodbye to Hombu and the people we had trained with on the Friday afternoon, returning by train to Kyoto, though not quite together; as the train separated at the first station, sending over half the group on a tour around the island while the rest of us headed back to Honshu! Luckily we all met up safe and sound back in Kyoto.

The final few days were packed with more site seeing and shopping. The temptation to buy a samurai sword almost proved too much for some, but the £20,000 price tag was just a little more than our student loans could afford. Saturday night was spent bowling and singing karaoke, which was great fun, although none of us are going to be the next Bon Jovi, Britney Spears or Snoop Dog!

An amazing time was had by all and plans are already being put in place for next year’s trip: both by those who are jealous of the stories and photos brought back this time, and those who just want a return trip!