Were there parts of your kendo experience that were unexpected or different from what you thought it would be like?
We were surprised to learn that kendo is practiced amongst children as young as six. I can hardly imagine a child wearing the bogu, wielding their own kendo shinai!
Compared to kendo, we assumed karate or judo may be more popular in Japan but that doesn’t seem to be the case. For a martial art to be so skillfully practiced, taught and learned by both the young and old was unexpected – kendo seems to be more popular across a wider demographic than we thought.
What are your thoughts on the sport and art of kendo now?
We’ve gained a newfound respect for both the sport and art of kendo. Last month, some of us came to Japan and experienced sado (traditional Japanese tea ceremony).
From these two experiences, it’s evident that the Japanese have an affinity for “ceremony” and “procedure”. For us, understanding these values allow us to better understand the Japanese culture.
If the Samurai Trip experience were to continue, what would you like to spend more time on?
We would spend more time working on gaining a sense of rhythm. With the stepping (footwork), striking, and shouting, we struggled to smoothly put together all of the elements