Lesson 2...

Master Yuli Romo came carrying a paper bag of boiled plantains at passed 10 AM and he gave me 1. I asked Arnold Narzo the address of their Binondo, Manila gym and he told me that even he told me, it's difficult to find because it's hidden and they practice from 5 PM to 8PM. Sometimes, their practice reaches 10 PM to 12 AM. He told me I will have difficulty going home since I live in Dasmariñas, Cavite.


At passed 10:30 AM, Arnold taught us (I'm with my fellow beginner- Sherwin) the basics with the rattan sticks: The Arko which is the swing to the head like in an arc shape while at the same time, your empty hand (the thumb is hidden) is blocking away in a counter-clockwise motion if it is a left empty hand and clockwise if it is a right empty hand. Also he taught us the Real (pronounced ri-yal) which is the swing from side to side while targeting the head. He told us not to make a spurt (buwelo) with the stick but just immediately strike it. Also he taught us the Anggulo, Plantsada and Aldabes which I mentioned in my last post. Real and Anggulo looks the same but the difference is that Real is targeting the top of the head of your opponent (same with Arko) while the Anggulo is targetting the temple or the neck. I made a mistake with the swing. Since Arnold was in the long range position facing me, I should have made a full rotational swing with Arko and Real. Arnold told us that we should just make it slow. The important thing is we get the right form. Speed will come later when we get used to the techniques. Arnold says that we should practice with a big mirror so we could see if we are doing the right form. I carried a shorter and thicker rattan sticks this morning compared to Sherwin's longer and thinner rattan stick. During our demo, he keeps moving to his right corner where I am near and able to hit me accidentally on my left elbow. I'm gonna get a longer stick. I always keep extending my weapon when I try to reach Arnold's stick and he tells me that I shouldn't over-extend. He always tells us to relax everytime we try hard to get the technique. He told us that when we hit with a rattan stick, it should always be with the tip because if it is with the body of the stick, it will easily shatter as you frequently use it in sparring practice. Arnold left after passed 12 PM. He has some agenda to attend to.


Some things I forgot to mention on my last post:

*The Atrakada (attracting) which is the forward movement of the feet.

*The hold that they call susi (Tagalog word for "key") or it's like your hold with a door key. It's similar with how the fictional character - Zatoichi (the blind masseur) hold his sword cane in a ready-attacking position.

*That I should just slide and not jump when doing a forward or backward movement (Ma'am Peachie told me this morning and last week). It's because my Adidas shoes are already broken that's why I'm reluctant to do a sliding motion. Now, my socks get wet when it rains that's why I don't want to brush them on concrete floor when walking or running.

* The abierta - the open guard stance similar to boxing

* The serrada - the closed guard stance


During practice with Ma'am Peachie Baron Saguin at passed 12 PM, I used my 2 unsharpened swords where the 4 of us (including 2 new comers- who are the brothers Arthur and Arjay). I sparred with Sherwin using my sword and dagger blades (the dagger is not sharp). I'm having difficulty swinging my swords at that time because of their heavy weights (20 ounces each, hurt my thumbs) that's why Ma'am Peachie told me to reduce it to 10 ounces next time. She said that's the ideal weight of sword I could carry. She told us to bring sunglasses next time, in case our sparring partner hits our eyes, they would be safe. I made a mistake with my feet when doing the forward and backward movements. Sometimes I'm like "walking on a thread" as Ma'am Peachie calls it because I'm trying to twist my hips as she always orders me to do. Ma'am Peachie said she likes my form now and she's really happy that she's my first teacher in the org. Hehe... Before she left, I asked Ma'am Peachie some questions:

1. How long will it take for us to master all the techniques?
- She told me that it depends on us.... I think that's a safe answer from her.

2. Can I use 2 baseball bats during practice as substitutes for eskrima sticks?
-She asked me why. I told her for long range (34-36 inches) and the bat has more stopping power. She told me I'm wrong because just like what I showed today during practice with my heavy swords that I had wielding difficulty, that would be the same with the baseball bats even if they are lightweight. She also said the size of a baseball bat is not enough for the long range in this FMA style which is a 44 inches stick.

Ma'am Peachie left at passed 2 PM. She passed the teaching to Anton.

Now the problem that I got with Anton (not only with him but the rest of the instructors) is his teachings are always different than the rest. Like with the Aldabes, his form ends where the stick is leaning on the shoulder while last week, Anthony taught me that at Aldabes, the end form is with the sword or stick pointing to your opponent's eyes. They also have different stances. Like I mentioned on my last blog: Anthony's stance is where the feet are widely separated, Ma'am Peachie's stance is the feet are near each other and the back foot should always face your opponent (feels like pigeon-toed), Arnold's stance is you should always feel that your gravity or body weight is in the center position.

*They always tell you the correct forms (raise your arm, it should be in center near your chest, etc.) but in a real street fight where there are no forms or rules, usually they won't work. I mean, your opponent wouldn't care if you're doing the right form or not. He'll just slash or stab you in any way he pleases... It's like they are complaining that the food they ordered in a restaurant is not pleasing to their eyes. That as if the food will still look the same inside their stomachs when they chew and swallow it.

Just a few moments after Ma'am Peachie left and Anton was teaching us, Grandmaster Tony Diego and Master Yuli Romo had a heated argument. GM Tony is saying Master Yuli is teaching Balintawak style of Arnis during the practice and he told him to get lost. He told us this is not the first time it happened. There are many times where he sees his actions- disrespecting Tatang Antonio Ilustrisimo saying he's too old to fight, that he's including other FMA techniques in the system, that Master Yuli was just watching when GM Tony and Master Christopher Ricketts are sparring and Master Yuli is teaching Arnis to his wife under a tree, and that Master Yuli couldn't make a decent punch. GM Tony told us that even his students in Makati left him because of his teaching attitude. The other thing that GM Tony is resenting that day is Master Yuli didn't ask his permission to teach Balintawak style of Eskrima. GM Tony cited one example when the son of legendary Momoy Cañete wants to teach San Miguel style of Eskrima to GM Tony's students, he asked GM Tony's permission. Apparently, all the things that happened between the 2 of them in the past accumulated inside GM Tony and it just bursts out from him today. I think GM Tony is just after the purity of the system. It's quite embarrassing to see GM Tony yelling while other visitors in the park saw what happened. Master Yuli didn't fight back and a senior student just tap him on his back and probably tell him to just go home. Btw, these are what Master Yuli looks like.

I kinda like how he wields the Kampilan...:

I'd like to be taught from him with that since I'm planning to buy that sword. He also designs and sells wooden Filipino swords and Karambit. Too bad, now he's fired in the org... I think it goes with the Chinese idiom: One Mountain Cannot Contain Two Tigers. Meaning: an area cannot have 2 very strong personalities leading it.

When I look at GM Tony, I keep wondering why he looks so poor? I mean, most grandmasters of martial arts in the US are big time as I have read on the internet. I think the instructors are in disguise of their true wealth.

Anyway, this is how I looked like today. My red headband really helped absorbing the sweat on my head during practice.

This is the picture of a father and son (don't know their names), also members of the group practicing the drills at the time GM Tony is explaining his sides of the argument. 

I wish I learn this art at the same age as this kid. I might also be a master by now. I think I was about that kid's age when I learned the trumpet. 

Ma'am Peachie said (also Anthony told me last week) that they are planning to publish another book. I got my copy of the first book the other day in FullyBooked The Fort, Taguig City.

I went out the park around passed 2:30 PM to go to Starbucks Tomas Morato Quezon Avenue, Quezon City. I arrived there at 4:30 PM after riding LRT-1 and MRT.

First Lessons...

The Organization's Logo

Yesterday started my first lessons in Kalis Ilustrisimo at around passed 10 AM. Ma'am Peachie first introduced the name Kalis Ilustrisimo (which I already knew) then started with the few basics.

The eyes should be looking a little lower and not that straight so it could see a wider scope. That's called the peripheral vision. Also the stomach should be tucked in. It's necessary to release your chi energy according to Ma'am Peachie. The hips are used always in turning, flexing, twisting around as you do the slash. Shoulder should be straight and you should use your height advantage always. Your upper arms and elbow should be lowered near your chest because if not, you'll be opened for strikes from your opponent (I also saw and remember that teaching from kenjutsu).

The most important thing is the footwork. The metatarsalia and phalanges bones of your back foot are flat on the ground while the other part which is the ossa tarsi bones of your back foot are raised so you can easily do a sudden forward or backward pressing movement.

The other foot is in front of you and flat straight to the ground. Combining the feet is similar to a boxing stance. Ma'am Peachie always tells me to straighten my feet and they should always be in front of her. It feels like my feet are pigeon-toed everytime I do it. She also pauses with her count before moving on to the next. She told me I have to wait for her count. My other teacher today is a 41-year old Australian student named Anthony. He is considered as my "senpai" or someone who learned the teachings at an earlier time than me. He started last December 2012 and according to him, this is his first and only martial art just like me. His stance teaching is quite different than Ma'am Peachie. If in Ma'am Peachie's teaching, it feels like she lets me do a pigeon-toed, Anthony tells me that my feet should be widely separated.

If you're holding your sword in the right hand, then the foot in the front should also be the right foot and vice versa when you switch the sword from right to left hand. In a ready position, the sword should be pointing upward; the dagger, pointing to your opponent. Mostly after doing the step in a freezing position, the sword and dagger are pointing to your opponent. There's a time when you need to fully swing the sword in a rotating motion and sometimes, just a slight swing so you can do a return or follow up movement of your sword.

The grip of the blade should be that the middle and ring fingers holding the handle and you're using your index and pinkies as guides. The grip of the sword should not be that tight or else, you will be easily disarmed. Ma'am Peachie also told me about the different kinds of holding a sword. If you're holding it in an attacking or neutral position. The way they swing the sword is similar to a badminton racket for a light swing and a tennis racket for a full rotational swing. Ma'am Peachie taught me the 3 parts of Amara which are the Anggulo (diagonal downward slash), the Plantsada (the horizontal mid-section slash on the stomach of your opponent) and the Aldabes (diagonal upward slash). In doing Anggulo or Aldabes, I should always imagine to hit the temple of my opponent. They say Aldabes is my best form. They also taught the Reterada or the retreating movement.

Anthony taught me the Kombate Heneral which is a strike where when someone is attacking you, you move aside but not that far from your opponent, then do the 3 steps of Amara. Also, Ma'am Peachie and Anthony taught me the 12 body strikes. It's quite confusing after step 6. There's another senpai whose name is Anton and he guided me with the steps.

Also, the parrying in Espada Y Daga (Sword and Dagger) or Punta Y Daga as they call it are quite confusing because you always change the position of your sword and dagger (sometimes the sword or dagger is flat as it deflects your opponent's weapon, sometimes you use the spine of the blade to parry) when you move to the next step after you finish doing the Amara. The whole idea is to always strike the wrist or arm of your opponent with the sword (reminds me of the emphasis in Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto-ryu Otake-ha), as well as stabbing the vital organs of your opponent's body with the dagger and they should be done simultaneously. Here are what they look like:

These are the advanced lessons at my first day in training. They always tell me about the "intention"- that I should always intend to do a kill but what hinders me of doing it is totally memorizing and remembering the next step. I also sometimes forget to move the dagger I'm holding in my left hand and just swinging my right hand with the sword. Also, I sometimes don't make a small step for my back foot or making a shortcut by a little jump with it which is bad. Even with all of those that happened, Ma'am Peachie and Anthony told me that I'm a fast learner. Afterall, this is my first time and I don't have any background in any FMA or other martial arts whatsoever. They are quite encouraging during practice.

I should have bring 2 elbow wraps and not just 1 because I switch the hold of the sword from right to left hand. Also, I should buy a shoulder support band since my shoulder ached after the practice because of the heavy weight of my bolo. I should also buy & bring 2 same length and weight bolo/machete/itak and not just 1. I also forgot to bring the receipt for my membership in Ayala Museum. It's closed tomorrow- Monday.

It's almost a 5-hour practice and I didn't notice the time when I practiced, even during drinking water breaks. I wish I video-recorded this practice. The group is planning to go to Banahaw mountains in Northern Luzon on October.

The prohibition in the group is teaching the steps to outsiders. I should first master all the techniques and get the permission from the senior instructors and from Grandmaster Tony first before teaching anyone because I couldn't explain the techniques further as of this time. This FMA style is combative in nature that's why Ma'am Peachie told me that they don't teach this in schools. I'm 1 of the walk-ins and they told me that they mostly teach this to someone related to them. Grandmaster Yuli Romo is the 1 who teaches the karambit and the group is often teaching the straight dagger.

I feel so privileged that this style was invented or originated in this country and it only costs PHP250 or US$5.59 per session. It's a family secret passed down from father to son, from 1 generation to the next and not allowed to be taught to outsiders especially to non-Filipinos before. In the past, people in other countries only learn it through seminars done by masters in this country that costs mostly US$80 or more these days.

There are so much more to learn...:

It's a good thing there are no rituals here where you need to chase & catch a piglet and  a monitor lizard like in this video:                                                 

                                                                               (funny)

or spar wrestling with a carabao or water buffalo (dangerous) like here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2att57zm_U

or be submerged in the water (spiritual): 

Those are mostly Pekiti Tirsia Kali videos by the way, a different FMA style.

Now, I'm all set. What I just need to do is practice the steps I learned today and get motivation on always attending the practice in Luneta, Manila. I think I have that since Ma'am Peachie is around.

No practice...

Last week, Ma'am Peachie of Kalis Ilustrisimo told me that even though sometimes when it rains during practice, they still continue it. So even though the sky is shady gray this Sunday morning, I still went onto the practice. It poured hard rain after I ate breakfast at Jollibee near LRT United Nations station.

Meanwhile, while sitting, holding an umbrella and having a Khadaffy Janjalani impression, this is what happened...:

I went there at around almost 10 AM and waited until 11:30 AM. Nobody shows up. 

I think rainy season is the perfect time to practice using eskrima sticks while trying to fight off the rain and the wind blows. It can serve as a training for your arm strength, balance and coordination. Also, there's a possibility that you can meet your enemy during a rainy weather. So I think, Kalis Ilustrisimo members should show up today because of those reasons. They should just keep their personal belongings especially their electronic gadgets from getting wet.

Next time I see a shady/dark gray sky in a Sunday morning even if it's not raining and especially if I don't see the fucking sun, I won't leave my house.

Kalis Ilustrisimo...

Today, I woke up early even though I slept late around 2 AM. I found the Kalis Ilustrisimo in Katigbak Ave. Rizal Park Luneta, Manila. I got some information about the group. They are teaching only every Sunday 10 AM until afternoon there. Tuition fee is PHP250 every session. The FMA group is solid blade-based meaning they are gonna teach you bladed weapons first before moving to sticks. They hold sticks at the bottom part of it. There's no allowance in the stick because it will be easily disarmed. The teacher told me that they also teach Filipino dirty boxing that is different than Panantukan. I wish they also teach dumog or Filipino wresting and grappling but they lack clean floor to do it (since it's in a park) . Dumog is essential when fighting 1 on 1, when both you and your opponent lost/drop your weapons and you want to win the fight through submission. The primary instructor has a background in Pekiti Tirsia Kali so that's a plus. The grandmaster Tony Diego was there and I'm able to talk to him personally. It's essential because he checks and instructs the trainers if they are teaching/doing the right stuffs. This is the real thing. And last, the most important inspiration for me to always go there every week is- one of the instructors is a sweet, hot, badass, sexy cougar- Ma'am Peachie.

I'm able to talk to her today closely and she told me she's studying Kalis Ilustrisimo since 1989. Wow! That's 24 years now. It's really her passion and I wanna learn from her. She told me that "Kalis" means blade (I really thought it's the sting ray logo on their shirts). She gave me some pointers on how to wisely buy an unsharpened bolo knife but I insisted to her that I want to buy a Panabas sword for practice. I really got inspired to join the group after seeing her awesome YouTube videos.

After the session, I just ate fish lauriat at Chowking outside Rizal Park near LRT. then I went to Quiapo to buy another item. This time, a bahi wooden knife and a case that holds 8 sticks and 2 blades.

Lastly, some hairclips and bands for practice.

The men in the group would probably be shaving their hair this week after seeing my long hair so they could influence me to cut it. There's a mentality here: "Proper grooming is the best policy" but I'll decide if I want to cut my hair or not. I'll be joining next week.

Visited Lapu-Lapu Shrine...

This afternoon, I went to Lapu-Lapu shrine inside Rizal Park Luneta, Manila.

I went there to find the group who teaches Kali Ilustrisimo. I read on their website that their session is free every Sunday in Luneta. I didn't know there are other Kali martial arts there aside from Ilustrisimo.

This is Kiathson Martial Arts. 

I thought this is Kali Ilustrisimo and their performance is free... but they are just showing off. When I inquired about their headquarters, they said it's in San Andres Bukid. As I checked google maps, it's in Mandaluyong City. The master told me that their style is traditional and their moves is up to 14 body strikes (compared to most FMA body strikes which is just 12) (I just read/watched that in martial arts, fewer techniques beats the many techniques). He also said he's teaching Aikido. He showed in front of me some disarming stick moves. Training is PHP500 monthly.

I also saw another 1: 

They are called Aikiyoi Martial Arts. Their kali sticks are as long as (or slightly smaller than) a bokken. I think it's a mix of Kali and Aikido.

There's a guy wearing a shirt of Laraw Kali Pamuok and as I check on the internet, their base is in Parañaque. 

The others are one on one sparring training with sticks or an umbrella. 

In the end of my search here in Luneta, I didn't able to see Kali Ilustrisimo. 

I think most of them are just showing off to attract potential students to support the financial needs of their martial arts club.

I think I'm just gonna stay in AKETS for a while since it's near my house and the master already responded to my text message inquiry. Lifetime membership is PHP500. Uniform is PHP1,000. Training is PHP100 per session, twice a week (Saturdays and Sundays). I just hope he has proper equipments and well ventilated training place. 

After that, I just went to Recto to buy new Kali sticks. It's called bahi. 

Bahi sticks

They cost PHP330 there with the bag. 1 stick costs PHP150. It's a fibrous wood made from an endangered palm tree here. Its weight is heavy and its strength is more durable than kamagong that's why most FMA practitioners use it. 

Kamagong sticks

I just need to know what kind of oil for wood should I use for maintaining the wood strength of these sticks?

Before I went home, I went to the Mechanical Engineering review center (near Recto) I'm currently enrolled in to get some hand-out notes to review for licensure exam.