Schools: April 2007 Archives

I managed to visit a few Taiji schools in the area and spend some time at each.  There are a lot of good schools and teachers here.  I finally decided to stay with Li's Tai Chi & Kung Fu Academy in Cupertino.  Master Shu Dong Li is very professional and very serious about Taiji, and focuses a lot on the internal energy and the foundations in addition to the forms.  The students are pretty advanced, and most of them are Chinese, which is another good sign.  I have been to the school for a second "trial" session and it's obvious to me that Taiji - specially the Chen style - is a very serious thing here, which is what I've been looking for.  The school itself is a large and professional facility.

Master Li has DVDs showing the forms along with step by step instructions, and I can tell you seeing different tapes/DVDs from different teachers they are of very good quality in terms of content.  I regularly use my Chen Style Old Form First Road as a learning aid.  Obviously tapes and DVDs are not to be used as the sole means of learning, but a helpful tool to complement the actual class.

Some other good schools/teachers in the area:

Hong Dao Wushu Academy
Academi of Tai Chi
Wu (Hao) Tai Chi Foundation
Taijiquan Tutelage of Palo Alto (Yang Cheng-Fu style)

It was a pleasant surprise for me upon moving to the Bay Area to find out there are many Taiji schools here.  There are a lot of Chinese people living in this area and therefore one sees more traditional Chinese things - everything - here: From authentic Chinese food to Real Taiji schools.

I'm planning to attend a session at a few of them to get a feel about the school, the teachers, and the level of students.  I'm very excited!

One should be able to find a Taiji school without difficulty in either San Francisco, San Mateo, or San Jose/Cupertino area.