Kung Fu in Kowloon - 功夫喺九龍

Gotta love those outfits, and the concentration

It feels like there are many things that have been on-the-to-do-list for quite some time, without ever quite happening. So once in a while it is great to tick something off that ever-expanding list. One of these is the Kung Fu demonstrations in Kowloon Park, which ought to have been easier to get along to, given how close they are to our apartment (perhaps a three minute walk, at the absolute maximum).

These happen every Sunday, weather permitting, in the sculpture garden of the park - an area is roped off, seats are set-up, and various martial arts groups and people go through the paces for the benefit of an audience that seems to comprise mostly of old Chinese guys (former or current martial artists, or armchair enthusiasts, perhaps?) and sundry curious tourists.

It was a thrill to finally see it, because I didn't really have a sense of what it would be like. Sure, there would be martial arts, but would this be sparring, impromptu lessons, people doing practice drills, or who knows what?

It turns out that it is a bit like what might happen at an Agricultural Show, or a local fair, back in Australia. Though I have no idea how it is organised - is there a peak body for martial arts in Hong Kong? - it seems like it's a forum for the sort of heart-warming, get-the-locals-involved event that every place needs. So while I was there there were demonstrations from one particular school, where the teachers (師父) seemed to be two women. So I saw demonstrations from the beginners (some of whom looked about three or four), through intermediate groups, to some of the older students (late high-school age). Most of the groups ran through a set of moves lasting around three minutes, though a couple of the exhibitions were of stylized, choreographed fights, almost like a dance.

Swords too!

There was also some single performers, mostly older men, and it was hard to tell whether they had just signed up to give a demo, or were part of the same school as the kids in the bright uniforms. Some had uniforms of their own, while others were just in comfortable training clothes. They were all fun to watch - a good reminder that martial arts is about lots of hard work, practice and consistent discipline, rather than what you see in the movies. The most fascinating were two individual demos which were of a style that seemed to be mostly about marshalling your chi (氣, I think!) because these involved very restricted movement, and a whole lot of straining of the face and neck muscles. To me it put me in mind of something I had only vaguely read about, the One-inch punch. It turns out that wikipedia has quite a lot to say about this, if you follow the link, which is all about the differences in Northern and Southern styles of martial arts. Being southerners, here in greater Guangdong province, I suppose I should conclude that those performances were the most local and 'authentic' of them all.

While I'm on the subject, and because I'm unlikely to get back to this topic anytime soon, if you're looking for a good bit of escapist fiction including the beautiful city of Hong Kong, some rollicking martial arts, and the odd Daoist diety, then look no further than this series by Kylie Chan. Lots of fun...