GALLERY — SEPTEMBER 2005, NEW YORK CITY
In September 2005, my student Artis Pabriks, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Latvia, visited New York to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations. As a dedicated Karate practicioner, Artis was able to include some training time with me into his itinerary. In the evenings, he went from a meetings at the United Nations, then a cocktail or dinner and straight to the Dōjō.
Here are a few highlights of the week:
Yobiundō & Hojo Undō
We started with Yobiundō and Hojo Undo (preparatory drills).
Kata
Then, we continued reviewing all the Naifuanchi & Pinan Katas.
We went into a lot of detailes...
Sagi Machiwara & Kakie
We also practiced some basic drills with Sagi Machiwara (a hanging tree log used to strike with the handa and feet) that required changing from high to low stances, and a lot of Tenshin (body displacement).
Next, we worked on same basic drills of Kakie, which is an ancient Okinawan Ti fighting techniqhe. Many people compare Kakie to the "Sticky hands" used in Chinese Martial Arts. And we finished with some Iri kumi (inside fighting) applications.
Private Concert & Party
The last night, I was invited to the Latvian Mission to the United Nations and performed two sets of 30 minutes on a Baroque Guitar and a Classic Guitar. Afterwards, the party really got started. And we had plenty of good food & wine.
