UK Tai Chi Retreats
How We Do Tai Chi Retreats
Our UK summer camps are set in beautiful corners of the English countryside with atmospheric training spaces just a couple of hours away from London. Taking place over a long weekend, there’s intensive Tai Chi training, as well as time to wander around and soak up the surroundings. With a campfire one night, and Tai Chi Philosophy talk on the other, it’s a good way to slow down, recharge, and connect with interesting people. Here are some testimonials from summer camps over the years:
“[Highlights included] learning something new from someone that it is both knowledgeable and passionate about the subject. Food was great, and the atmosphere was relaxed. I laughed a lot, discovered two great new teas and became almost proficient in the art of roasting marshmallows.” V.P. 2017
“When out there in those woods under those immense trees time just evaporated… classes seemed to fly past in an instant – every moment of them pure joy, energy, contentment, deep stillness.” M.K. 2019
“It helped cement my belief that Tai Chi is a practise that will cement my general wellbeing and recovery from ill health. My confidence has benefitted greatly and my sense of possibilities expanded enormously. I can see and feel that the retreat strengthened muscles I did not know I had!” N.M. 2019
Our Next Retreat
Our next retreat will take place when conditions return to normal post-pandemic. This will be an all-levels Tai Chi retreat themed around the Tai Chi powers of Peng (ward-off) and Lu (rollback) where we come to know them through solo practice, gentle partnerwork, and through the trigrams that represent them. There are 10 hours of tuition between Friday afternoon and Sunday lunchtime including morning meditation lessons and a talk on the Tai Chi Classics.
The Classics are a short treatise explaining the principles of Tai Chi written by its creator Zhang San Feng in the 13th Century; I will retranslate this short text and explain it using my own experience. The talk will also feature short practice sessions where we learn how to use the principles physically, and a handout will be given at the end.
