More and more people live and work in Ljubljana without (yet) speaking Slovenian - exchange students, people in tech companies, researchers, people who followed a partner here. Nearly all of them ask the same thing: can I join a regular class if I do not understand the language?
The answer is yes, and the reasons are more interesting than they first appear.
Why Kung Fu is easier linguistically than you expect
A martial art is not transmitted by explanation but by demonstration. The teacher shows a movement, you repeat it, they correct you - often by placing your hand or knee where it belongs. This way of learning is older than any textbook and works regardless of language.
Qi Gong is simpler still in this respect. The exercises are slow and repeatable, the breath leads the movement, and the whole form is shown forwards and backwards until the body copies it. Many of our international students begin with Qi Gong and later join the martial part of the class as well.
What this looks like with us
Both teachers can run a class in English. In practice the explanation runs in Slovenian and the key parts are repeated in English - and when there are several international students in a group, that happens by itself. Groups are small, so the teacher can come to an individual and show the thing once more without stopping the class.
The Chinese terms are equally new to everyone. In that sense we are all foreigners in the hall.
You will hear some words in Chinese - the names of stances, forms and concepts such as qi and gong fu. Everyone learns those, whatever their mother tongue, and that shared vocabulary is often what binds a group together fastest.
If you are in Ljubljana only temporarily
You can join at any point in the year - we have no enrolment windows and require no annual contract. If you are here for one semester on an exchange or six months on a project, that is not an obstacle. Plenty of people have trained with us for four months and left with basics they continued at home; some look us up again when they return to Ljubljana.
Practical details
- Where: Ziherlova 44, Vič - a few minutes by bus or bike from the centre of Ljubljana.
- When: morning and afternoon slots; exact times are on the schedule.
- What you need: comfortable trousers and a t-shirt. We train barefoot.
- How to get in touch: simply write and say when you would like to come - English is perfectly fine.
One thing the schedule does not mention
For people who have just moved, regular training often does more than physical good. Twice a week you see the same faces, which is rare in a new city - and after a few months you notice you have acquaintances with no connection to your job. That is not a reason to join, but it is a frequent consequence.
