What Time Does Thapae Gate Tai Chi Start?

[TravelerEastWest]

What time does Thapae Gate Tai Chi Start?

And are they training on Saturday Sunday and holidays?

I have take the kids to school Monday to Friday is not possible...

Note I am a beginner and just want to make some friends and learn the basics for health to start.

[zungmay]

Hi Can you give more details as this is new to me.

I would like to attend too.

Who is the teacher? What days?

Thank you

[Semper]

Several years ago when I lived in the city they started around 6 Am, can't remember about Saturdays and Sundays though.

[MrBrad]

There are quite a number of places around town that have early morning tai chi and shibashi exercises. I'm aware of the groups at 3 Kings Monument, the municipal stadium in town (north side of the campus), Buak Haad Park in the southwest corner of the old city, at the Red Cross compound along the west side of the Ping River in the block south of the US Consulate, and at Tha Pae Gate. Surely there are other places as well.

I think they all begin around 5:45, continue for about an hour, and are free and open to all. There is no teacher, but rather a skilled leader selected from the group. They meet every day including weekends, but now with the rainy weather sometimes will be forced to cancel for the day.

Most members are older--but healthier--Thais, many of Chinese descent. The exercises are not strenuous, and are quite easy to follow along. Join them; I'm sure you will feel welcomed.

[cmbe]

Agreed with MrBrad and you can do it also at Wat Chiang Man, on Ratpakinai road.

[hellodolly]

Don't know about these drop in one's. The little experience I had was back in Canada in a group. the moves were very precise and it would take a bit of time to learn them. I have watched a little bit in the Park on the South West corner of the old city. I believe it starts at 8:00 not sure of that. But it seemed do me that a lot of them were not just imitating the movements they seemed to know what they were doing. Probably had taken lessons before.

[TravelerEastWest]

There are quite a number of places around town that have early morning tai chi and shibashi exercises. I'm aware of the groups at 3 Kings Monument, the municipal stadium in town (north side of the campus), Buak Haad Park in the southwest corner of the old city, at the Red Cross compound along the west side of the Ping River in the block south of the US Consulate, and at Tha Pae Gate. Surely there are other places as well.

I think they all begin around 5:45, continue for about an hour, and are free and open to all. There is no teacher, but rather a skilled leader selected from the group. They meet every day including weekends, but now with the rainy weather sometimes will be forced to cancel for the day.

Most members are older--but healthier--Thais, many of Chinese descent. The exercises are not strenuous, and are quite easy to follow along. Join them; I'm sure you will feel welcomed.

Mr Brad,

Thank you very much.

Your informationis exactly what I am looking for. I am on Chang Klan road not far from the Night Bazaar so Thapae gate sounds like a good early morning walk on the weekends

I have never heard of shibashi so I looked it up and sounds like something very good for a beginner

http://www.everyday-taichi.com/shibashi.html

"As well as being a complete exercise routine it can also be used as a warm up for the tai chi forms or other types of physical exercises.

This pattern is very good for people who want to move on to Yang style tai chi forms because it introduces the basic elements of weight shifting, co-ordination of hand and leg movements together with controlled breathing."

[FolkGuitar]

Having taught Yang style Tai Chi for many years I'll say that any beginner who joins any of these classes WILL benefit from the movements. They are VERY easy to do 'almost' correctly, though quite difficult to do perfectly. And doing them 'almost' correctly will improve your physical and mental health without doing you any harm what so ever.

Just take a place in in middle back, and try to move the same way as the person in front of you does. As the group turns left and right, if you've placed yourself in the middle you'll always have someone in front of you to watch and follow. Imagine yourself a marionette dangling from a single string attached to the top of your head... let your body relax and 'flow' rather than be pulled or pushed. After a couple of sessions, someone in the group will come over to you and 'correct' one part of the way you are moving, perhaps just how you raise your arm or hold your fingers. The next time someone else will correct another part, maybe the way you are shifting your weight from one foot to another... Eventually you will be moving like everyone else. This doesn't mean you are doing it 'correctly.' It just means that you are doing it the way everyone in that group is doing it. And that's OK.

Tai Chi is a VERY precise martial art, and the precision of it is its core. Without that precisions, it is just a very relaxing, healthy, moving meditation exercise. But it sounds as if you are more interested in learning a healthy way to exercise rather than a fighting style, and any of these groups can provide that for you.

[TravelerEastWest]

"Tai Chi is a VERY precise martial art, and the precision of it is its core. Without that precisions, it is just a very relaxing, healthy, moving meditation exercise. But it sounds as if you are more interested in learning a healthy way to exercise rather than a fighting style, and any of these groups can provide that for you. "

Yes, at the moment health is the key as I have an allergy to something - possibly pollution, and I think an overall moving meditation exercise is what I need to stregthen my immune system - and Tai Chi is fun.

I am undecided about Tai Chi being a practical fighting style. No doubt someone who is training seriously for a long time who also has talent can make it work but for us everyday guys I am not so sure...

I used to do Aikido when I lived in Hawaii and after years of practice when I was fitter it was of limited use.