For my CIP I practiced with the Kyoto University Judo Club. In this club many of the members were black belts, meaning I got to practice with incredibly skilled Judoka. This paired with the strictness of a serious Japanese Martial Arts club made participating a little difficult at times. There was a very strict hierarchy within the club, with the older members generally running practice and teaching techniques, and the younger, newer members taking care of cleaning and setting up the clock along with any other menial tasks. In addition, teachers also occasionally came to class and taught techniques as well. At both the beginning and the end of practiced the members sat in line based on rank within the club. There was also a very strict order to the activities during practice. The hierarchical nature along with the strict schedule of the Kyodai Judo Club was much different than my experience with Martial Arts clubs in America, which are generally much more laid back and there is less of a strict member hierarchy. Occasionally, I was either standing in the wrong position, or doing something that would be OK in an American Martial Arts club, that was not OK at Kyodai. However the members were generally nice about telling me where to go and were understanding of my ignorance.<\/p>\n
Originally, when I first started attending practices I was very much outside of the hierarchy and no one really bothered to explain things to me. However, as I continued to show up, as well as attempt to speak with members in Japanese I began to be treated more like a member of the club and less like someone who simply attended classes. Towards the end of the semester I was participating in cleaning duties along with the younger members of the closer. This meant I was at the bottom of the hierarchy, however this also meant I was at least part of the hierarchy and meant I was somewhat of a member and less of an outsider.<\/p>\n
In addition to learning a large number of new Judo techniques I was able to see how a Japanese Martial Arts Club is run in comparison to an American Club. While difficult at times this was an invaluable experience which allowed me to not only experience the Japanese Language in greater way but a small microcosm of the Japanese community as well.<\/p>\n
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For my CIP I practiced with the Kyoto University Judo Club. In this club many of the members were black belts, … \u7d9a\u304d\u3092\u8aad\u3080