LOGO2

Hey peops, thanks for the comments. think i should describe the logo a little so you guys can understand where i'm coming from in terms ofelements and composition.

firstly, it was important to address both the martial-art and art-form aspect of capoeira, ie, you have the capoeiristas(element 1) representing the martial-art and the berimbau(element 2) representing the musical/art-form aspect. while searching for the general shape of the logo, a circular naturally surfaced as it is in which we jogo ie roda(element 3).

secondly, why the composition(ie position) of the 3 elements are as such. because of the irregular shape of the 2 capoeiristas, it is only possible to have them smack center of the logo. then with regards to why the berimbau also smack center over the capoeiristas leading to the 'clashing of elements', the logic behind it is the berimbau controls the game/roda/how we play/mediates between both capoeristas....hence in a sense it is the it should dominant over the capoeirista and roda thus it is also why it's scale larger than the circle and the capoeristas. as for the words "NUS CAPOEIRA" initial placement of it along the spine of the berimbau was just my personal take, as i liked it interacting with all the other elements giving a more compact feel. but like LOGO2 it is posible to pull them out to the rim of the roda avoiding the clashing/cluttering of elements and balancing out the logo.

finally, colour. in the begining, i was set doing a B&W logo. thought it was cleaner and gives a shaper lookand won't turn out as circus-sie(lots and lots of loud colours) as most capoeira logos.(and also because B&W is cheaper as most shirt printer qoute prices per colour). However, i finally decided on including the yellow, green and blue because of it being the colours on the Brazil flag. But i deliberately kept the colours only to the roda rim and as thin as compositionally viable, in hopes of again, not causing the logo to become to circus-sie. well hope the explaination above has clear up the what's and why's of the logo.

p.s yes, au-batido capoeirista is a lady...slimmer limbs, rounder hips, smaller waist and not bald....i noe its not much but being a silhouette it hard to tell.

Stuff You Don't Really Want to Know

This is gonna be politically charged, no matter how I phrase it. Now I'm not saying anything about lineage, or authenticity, or going back to 'the roots', whatever that means. It's just interesting to know that capoeira is not the only 'fight-like dance, dance-like fight' in the world. Just because the media brought it to you first doesn't mean that it pre-dates, or is the source of, others, and neither should this blogpost.

2008 Afrikan Warrior Women
The n'golo dance is in the second half. Or maybe she's just doing capoeira in London.

AKERU Spreads Their Wings and Soars To Success!

damartialartspage describes Akeru as 'Akeru is an African martial art\school\class that is based on Afro-Brazillian Dance (techniques of both cutlures), martial arts, culture, discipline and philosophy.' Meanwhile it also lists Bassula, Calinda, Gabetula, Kamangula and Kipura (hey hey!) as progenitors of Capoeira. Strangely, Batuque, of which Mestre Bimba's father was a famous batuqueiro, is listed, but not highlighted. Gotta love the Internet.

Ever heard the myth that Capoeira involves no punches because the slaves had their hands cuffed? Well, it just so happens that there is a 'Shackled Hands' martial art! I'd take it with a pinch of salt, though. I think this guy invented the martial art and called himself 'master'. Then again, isn't that how martial arts start?

I may be wrong, but it seems to be linked to the Ancient Egyptian religion of Kemetism. In any case, if you ever find yourself having to beat coppers who've cuffed you...


This is a demonstration battle. It starts about 3 minutes into the vid. 8:30 is really funny, and it's interesting to know that we Asians have a fight-like dance too. That is, if you identify yourselves with the Korean identity...
-EW

Club Logo

LOGO1
Originally uploaded by CAbure

Comments??

28th August's Class

You learnt:

Martelo: those who can, do.


Those who cannot, teach. :D

Meia Lua de Frente


Esquiva Frontal

Esquiva Lateral

Esquiva variants for the truly badass.


You also learnt:

Ê Paraná

You'll need to scroll down to find it first.

Cajuê

Lembra ê, lembra

I couldn't find a link with a translation, so bear with me:
She remembers, she remembers
She remembers of the red (vermilion) earth
She remembers, she remembers
She remembers of the red earth
[the last two lines]
She remembers of the earth that is good
She remembers of the earth that is best

Interpretation: I'm really not qualified, but my guess is that apparently in the nations of Africa where the people were enslaved, there must have been a lot of red soil.

A hora é essa

Special request from Caburé and Hassan: Navio Negreiro (Mestre Gytaúna)

Navio Negreiro (Mestre Marcos Gytaúna)

Negros que vieram de Angola No navio negreiro Veio para Bahia Viver no cativeiro Oiô… Uoioiô ioioiô oioiô ioioiô Oioiô ioioiô uoioiô ioiô Negro não é mais escravo, Negro não sofre mais não, Negro é o sentimento Da cultura da nossa nação Uoiô… Uoioiô ioioiô oioiô ioioiô Oioiô ioioiô uoioiô ioiô Eles foram maltratados no tempo da escravidão, Tratados como animais pela branco opressão. Porém sempre lutaram e a fé nunca falhou Com a força dos orixás a liberdade chegou Uoiô… Uoioiô ioioiô oioiô ioioiô Oioiô ioioiô uoioiô ioiô

Negros that came from Angola Into the slave ship Headed for Bahia Living in captivity The Negro is not slave-like The Negro's place is not to suffer more The Negro is the sentiment Of the culture of our nation They were mistreated in the time of slavery Treated like animals by the white oppression Still they continued fighting and a belief that never faltered With the force of the orixás (candomblé deities) freedom came

If you want the CD, buy it from Mestre Val Boa Morte. The CD is called 'Berimbau de Fé'. It will probably cost you S$25.

Getting that sway: GINGA

Hey, it was great seeing all you guys trying out Capoeira and I am very greatly encouraged to see all of you trying out the new movements so here is just a review post to recap what my station taught last night: the GINGA.

As you already know, the Ginga is the basic movement of which Capoeiristas use to deliver kicks, sweeps, dodges or just other types of movement. The word ‘Ginga’ translates into the meaning of ‘to sway’, so what we wanna see is a smooth swaying motion from left to right. How do we get that effect? The trick is in the transferring of your weight from right to left; here’s a little exercise you can do:

-Stand and position your feet so that the space between them is slightly larger than your shoulder-width

-Bend your legs such that the angle formed with the inside of your knees is a little more than 90 degrees

-Position your upper body such that you lean forward a little but remember to keep your back straight the whole time.

-Now just sway from left to right; shift your weight supported on your right leg to your left and back again and just keep going. This exercise is to allow you to feel the swaying motion and achieve that smoothness. Plus it will provide some strengthening to your thigh muscles and hamstrings for stability.

I think all of you have a general idea of how to do a ‘Ginga’, so all that is left for you is to find some space in your house or rearrange your furniture and just keep practicing your ‘Ginga’ because if you guys really want to improve, you gotta practice on your own at home as well. Here are several tips you should take note of when doing the ‘Ginga’ on your own.

-Always bend your knees more, I know it’s tiring and as you keep doing the ‘Ginga’ you will start bending less and less. Make a conscious effort to maintain that slightly more than 90 degrees angle with your knees at all times. This will help you get that ‘sway’ and maintain the same height while doing your ‘Ginga’.

-Always keep your hands up to protect your face and sides

-Always look at your ‘opponents’ eyes, but if you’re practicing alone then just look straight ahead

-As your legs are moving about, refrain from ‘hopping’ or ‘bouncing’ about. What we want is a smooth motion. It’s perfectly fine if your feet are sliding against the floor.

-Lean forward slightly but maintain a straight back to protect your spine, I cannot stress this enough. Your lower back will start to ache, but it’s natural because you are constantly tightening your lower back muscle to keep your spine straight and this is causing the ache. It’s good! Because you are strengthening your back muscles

I hope you guys will practice the ‘Ginga’ at home and try out the exercises and take note of the tips that I have provided. I look forward to see you guys improve and then we can teach you even more stuff! Have fun and train safe!

- Cabeça

First Day..... BOOT CAMP!

Hello Every Body!

Today we had our first first first class and boy were there many people. I apologize to those who feel that it was not enough of a workout, but because it is the first class and we had to show some basics...and in capoeira there are so many fundamentals to impart, from movements, to songs, to instruments! Well, at least you all got a good over all feel of our class.

Some of us had dinner botak jones after class so next time if you guys can join us, please do! Its family bonding time (:

Do remember your group names because in the future classes, your groupings would be used to call out to you all to make the running of classes easier.

Right, so i showed you guys how to play the attabaque and the pandeiro. But in this post, I'm gonna let the pro-s show you how to do it! Their beats are not capoeira beats but they sure do know how to entertain!

First up is the pandeiro by Carlinhos, a famed prodigy with the pandeiro

Next is the Atabaque!


Well, for instruments, normally people don't learn to play them with flair within a day. It takes practice and if you guys can, just play our instruments during the break times.

Oh ya for a really good post on how to play the atabaque, search for Pek/Cabure's post for atabaque playing under the music labels.

Ok thats all for tonight

Love Love
Bambu


You also learnt 4 songs:

Dona Maria, como vai você

São Bento me chama
Lyrics here.

Roda maravilhosa

Zum zum zum, capoeira mata um
Lyrics here.


Yes, that last one was wickedly funny, no? Anyway, remember when I said that the songs were secular? Well... not exactly: they're secularised, but they're not secular. Click here to read a little on their cultural context.

Cheers,
EW

To Hit or Not To Hit??

Ola!!!

to answer the question posted on our tagboard by freshie1 with regards to whether we actually hit(ie is there actual contact) when we spar....

for us, we don't normally(sometimes we do) hit our sparring partners, as most of you have noticed when we spar in the Roda. the reason for this is:

-firstly, for your fellow capoeirista's own safety. as most of us still can't fully control our kicks(ie speed, strength and aiming) it you just 'fling-it' and hit your sparring partner, chances of injuries are gonna sky rocket. before you know it, WHAMP!!! your partners on the floor, and there will be crack ribs, broken toes, dislocated jaw...etcetc.

-secondly, and more importantly, it is to learn CONTROL...to throw a kick and know when to stop or when how to discontinue a kick in the middle of its execution or how to change in the middle of a kick is CONTROL; to kick and hit where intended with the intended amount of power is CONTROL. Throwing a kick and stop just inches away from your sparring partners head is much tougher and takes more control then to just fling a kick madly with full force. Force and power of attacks are easy to obtain, but CONTROL of a kick is muchmuchmuchmuch much(x infinity) takes a lifetime to master.

Thus, its more of a kicking and attacking with control and to let your sparring partner know that "oh...i could have hit you. but i didn't...bleah=p" then to kick and attack madly irregardless of where you hit, how hard you hit and whether your partner SURVIVES the attack or not.

However, after saying all these, don't be surprise if you happen to encounter Rodas outside where fully contact of attacks occurs. Since capoeira is a martial art, the very raw essence of self-defence and injuring your opponents is still present.

To Hit or Not To Hit is a question with answers that differs from schools to schools and groups to groups.

Pek/Cabure

How to Use Jstor

Alright bookworms, how many of you have typed 'capoeira' into LINC? Hands up, be honest.

You probably just found a miserable chapter in some enthnomusicology book about how the song structures derive from Arabic poems, right?

Well, who knew that there's better stuff in the e-Resources! (mental note to self: do not sound too enthusiastic in this post). You can find journal submissions by ethnographers J. Lowell Lewis and Greg Downey. Those names may sound familiar if you have read Ring of Liberation or Learning Capoeira.

And if you're a freshie, this post will show you how to use the e-Resources, on the off chance that you are an Arts major majoring in Sociology, History or--my deepest condolences--Theatre Studies.

1. Go to the NUS Libraries homepage.

2. In the e-Resources bit in the middle of the page, click the database Jstor.

3. Log in with your network domain (for most of you, NUSSTU-student), userid and password.

4. Agree to abide by the copyright policy. This will bring you to the Jstor hompage via proxy through NUS Libraries.

5. Type 'capoeira' into the search box and hit enter. Brace yourself!

6. You can find journal entries such as:

[What is a journal, you ask? Well, it's sort of like an FHM magazine for professors. It has less pictures and a lower readership. Ironically, a lot more reading is involved]

J. Lowell Lewis. Sex and Violence in Brazil: "carnaval, capoeira", and the Problem of Everyday Life. American Ethnologist, Vol. 26, No. 3 (Aug., 1999), pp. 539-557

Wow, not just sexy violence or even violent sex, but sex and violence! It's like the PhD.'s equivalent of a hollywood blockbuster!

'American Ethnologist' is the name of the magazine. Yes, it goes up to 600+ pages (I told you more reading was involved). No, there are no centrefold pullouts. 'Sex and Violence in Brazil carnaval, capoeira", and the Problem of Everyday Life' is the title of the article Lewis (probably Dr Lewis) submits to American Ethnologist to publish to justify the letters preceding his name, and also so that his university doesn't fire him.

Greg Downey. Listening to Capoeira: Phenomenology, Embodiment, and the Materiality of Music. Ethnomusicology, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Autumn, 2002), pp. 487-509

Maya Talmon Chvaicer. The Criminalization of Capoeira in Nineteenth-Century Brazil. The Hispanic American Historical Review, Vol. 82, No. 3, Special Issue: Slavery and Race in Latin America (Aug., 2002), pp. 525-547

Thomas H. Holloway. "A Healthy Terror": Police Repression of Capoeiras in Nineteenth-Century Rio de Janeiro. The Hispanic American Historical Review, Vol. 69, No. 4 (Nov., 1989), pp. 637-676

Richard Graham. Technology and Culture Change: The Development of the "Berimbau" in Colonial Brazil. Latin American Music Review / Revista de Música Latinoamericana, Vol. 12, No. 1 (Spring - Summer, 1991), pp. 1-20

The last one is a review. There are a lot of these. It's a professor writing about another person's work. You see, if you can't think of anything to write, you can go to an e-resource, download something, and write about that. This is also how professors entertain themselves (instead of staring at centrefolds). As you can see, O'connor is reviewing a work by Mestre Cobra Mansa--that slick angoleiro you saw in the videos.

Kathleen O'Connor. Review: [untitled]: Reviewed work(s): Capoeira Angola from Salvador, Brazil. Grupo de Capoeira Angola Pelourinho by Mestre Cobra Mansa; Heidi Rauch.
Ethnomusicology, Vol. 41, No. 2, Special Issue: Issues in Ethnomusicology (Spring - Summer, 1997), pp. 319-32

Strangely, if you type 'capoeira angola' without the quotation marks, you get another set of capoeira articles. Beats me.

Okay, you say. There's lots of stuff to read, but how will this improve my game, pôrra? Well, that's a very good question. (steeples fingers, looks condescendingly over glasses) The concept of 'game' was first tackled by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein. He argued that any element of game, like play, competition, fun, rules, failed to adequately define what games are. There is always a game which is an exception. Ultimately, he argues that what we call 'game' must be understood as a series of 'family resemblances' where no single trait runs through. (leans back in highbacked leather-upholstered armchair) ... which brings us to the very interesting field of Ludology....

Stay awake!

-EW

Willinashanigan Welcome Tea!

Willinashanigan (Its a native Tuetala Dialect and means "Woohoo!") to the Welcome Tea! Many of you that came did sweat alot as most of us realized haha. Much apologies for switching off the air-conditioning earlier and causing all that condensation, but I promise that next thursday will not be like that!

All of you moved and kicked with much effort and I could tell every one was having fun. Well, in our school, all we wanna do is have fun and play Capoeira! The Axe ( pronounced Ah-sheh ) was really really gooooood! 

I've uploaded some pictures of the welcome tea and due to the constant movements and bad lighting, its kinda blurry but see if you can find yourselves in them haha.

Well for those of you who would like to be part of our family, just come down to the Dance Studio on Tuesday at 6pm. I'm sure you should have received a mail by now giving you more details.

For those people who missed the Welcome Tea, you are welcomed to join us on either Tuesday or Thursday for a trial class (:

For those of you who have not decided to join yet....well....I'm sorry but please go away...I'm kidding! Haha, Please do not place any pressure on yourself and our doors are always open for you! (:

See you guys!

Love Love

Bambu

* Oh by the way, I was joking about the Tuetala dialect..there's no such language, I just needed a cool sounding word haha*

Esquiva, Pôrra!

First up, don't use the word 'pôrra'. It is a very naughty Brazilian Portuguese word.

You had to click it, didn't you? Anyway, this is my little meditation on the esquiva (literally, 'dodge', probably from the same Latin root as 'escape'). Basically what I want to say is that the esquiva is a dodge that lets you control space. Now if you understand this, you can skip the rest of this post. If you don't, and you actually think I might be saying something important (silly you), then read on.

Mestre Acordeon (1993. Capoeira: A Brazilian Art Form. pp:175) says,

This sphere [the movements of a capoeirista] envelops the energy of the fighters and the best capoeirista controls the inner space [of the roda]. His or her opponent must be handled carefully, as if inside a bubble of gelatin that needs to be moved around intact. An abrupt movement of attack that is mistimed will shatter the harmony of the jôgo. A centrifugal movement made too fast or a startled defense could break that surface tension of the sphere, making control of the game difficult. Experienced capoeiristas will make the jôgo flow smoothly event at a fast speed while attempting to control the action.

No prizes for guessing Mestre Acordeon's interpretation of the objective is control. But how does one control space when one has to back off from incoming kicks?!

Ah hah! Enter the esquiva! Sorry, one more quote (Capoeira, Nestor. Capoeira: Roots of the Dance-Fight-Game, p. 240):

As the late mestre Canjiquinha revealed to us once, “You can block the blow of a very strong man but you can’t block a truck at 100 mph.”

Yes, sound advice indeed. I think I read this somewhere (I'm not sure where), the esquiva is the corporeal manifestation of the slave's resistance modality (yes, that is what we Arts majors do--mystify the mundane and obfuscate the obvious with verbose verbiage). Already... enslaved (my diction is not very powderful), the slave's only method of resistance was through indirect subterfuge, deliberately misunderstanding instructions, faking stupidity and incompetence. It was a way of not giving in without direct confrontation of power-in which case he would surely lose. It is the feigning of a lack of power (intellectual or otherwise) that gave him his... 'space'.

'So what on earth has this to do with bettering my game, pôrra?' you might ask. Well, the esquiva is what allows you to avoid a direct confrontation (usually of shin-to-shin-which--let me assure you--hurts like crap). But when we start to learn it, we usually esquiva away from the attack, sometimes even backing straight out. Over time, we learn to esquiva at the 3 or 9 o'clock positions (12 noon is straight in front).

And then we stop.

I think that it is important to learn to esquiva into the movement (not into the attack!). Take space even as you move defensively. Esquiva diagonally into the half-past 10 and 1 o'clock positions. If the objective is a control of space, you want to occupy as large a sector of the roda as possible while cramping (choking) your opponent.

And an esquiva is not just an esquiva. EVERYTHING is an esquiva when you think about it. But then again, everything is a ginga too. Before I wax poetic, let me just say that breaking the ginga and 'running around' a compasso (a la Bryan) is also, basically, an 'esquiva'. A 'dodge' that lets you avoid a confrontation while gaining space for yourself. So is faking an armada and then hopping (esquiva-ing) over your opponent, or faking a compasso with a giro and going under a kick.

Yes, basically what I want to say is that the esquiva is a dodge that lets you control space.

And if you understood this sentence, you wouldn't have had to read my gibberish in the first place.

Stay Sexy,
-EW

Why sing Paraná ê?

Capoeira's iconic song. Know why we sing it? Neither did I!

-EW

The Warring Eras

Right now in the heat of the turmoil rolling outside our studio doors, we stay strong and sing many a song!! I wanna thank all of you for singing your heart out and playing your heart out, no doubt some of us looked like fools hahaha, but its through our antics like that which brings about new moves and improvement to our own game. 

Tomorrow is the welcome tea and there is much work to be done. For all the freshies coming tml, remember to bring along a towel and a water bottle. No shoewear is required and our location is at the Multi-Purpose Hall 4. Oh oh remember to bring an open mind and heart to make new friends and do silly antics! (:

For the seniors and people who have joined us already, please extend a warm welcoming hand to the new people and help them however much as you can such as showing them how you do it your way hehe.

We all just want to play, we all just want to have fun.

We all wanna learn song, we all wanna attabaque.

No one's stopping us, when we sing as one!

Bambu

How to Pose Capoeira Angola

Hello. This is for those of you who want to know how to make it look like you know what you're doing in Capoeira Angola.

Firstly, read this bit in Wikipedia--you know you can trust the Internet!

Then you can watch some videos on Youtube.

I like this one.

Mestre Jogo de Dentro ('Inside Game') is a legend for playing in tiny spaces.

Mestre Cobra Mansa is another legend. You saw him in the Angola Corrida video example in an earlier blogpost.

Then if you're still reading this post, this is my little soundbyte on Angola, which I mastered in the school halls of Singapore, in front of thousands of gullible schoolchildren:

The ginga is loose and relaxed--almost lackadaisical (not tight and obviously guarded like in Regional).

The kicks are primarily meia lua de compasso, chapa, chapa giratoria, meia lua de frente, chapeu de couro. Secondarily, low armadas. (Lastly, [IMHO] absolutely no martelos)

I think the objective is control of space, making as much movement possibilities for yourself while limiting your opponent's so that he can't move without opening himself for attack.

Movements are scrunched up (Au fechado, knees to chest) and closed. The game can oscillate between regular distance and really closed-in distance.

For the closed-in distance, when all eight limbs are on the floor, the objective is to position your primary weapons (feet, headbutt) in the spaces of threat to your opponent. These spaces are near his head (space from one of his shoulders to the other), his ribs (space between armpit and waist), and his gut.

Similarly, you are preventing the other guy from threatening your delicates. On the floor, you can use your knees & forearms to protect your gut. Thighs and movement for your ribs. Movement & forearms for your head.

Lastly, Angola has a lot of space for theatrics--praying, hexing, giggling, being your own appreciative audience, scratching your own backside and feigning injury (like Mestre Jogo de Dentro), so ham it up! (Actually, I'm of the opinion that you can do that in any Capoeira game, as long as you don't get beaten up.)

Stay Sexy, Fellow Poseurs!
-EW

PS: Yes, I know I don't play like these guys! You don't have to remind me!

Viva Loremil

Hey guys, some of you have been asking how to sing this song. The chorus is onomatopoeic. I just make it up. I say,

"dingy dingy dingy dang,
da da gi down down,
baom, ba baom ba"

Viva Loremil (Mestre Acordeon)

Long Live Loremil

Iê, quando sai Là da Bahia, minha terra Iê, quando sai Là da Bahia, minha terra Sartei rio, pulei cancela Por este mundo de Deus -coro- E viajei, Sete caminho empoeirado E viajei, Sete caminho empoeirado Sete legua, sete estados P’ra chegar onde cheguei Aqui parei, Nessa terra hospitaleira A imagem da Bahia Do farol te là Ribeira -coro- E jà moravam em Nova York Loremil Jelon Viera Dois Bahianas aqui perdido Ensinando a Capoeira A Capoeira, de origem Africana Que chegou la na Bahia Pequinininho, engatinhando Foi crescendo e engorgando Se tornando Brasileira -coro- Salve Loremil Machado Que Deus o tenha là no ceu Pelo seu grande legado Pra êle tiro meu chapeu Salve os Mestres aqui presente Meus amigos e convidados Essa Roda està aberta A todos meu obrigado

When I left Bahia, my homeland When I left Bahia, my homeland Past the river, beyond the gate For this world of God -chorus- I travelled seven dusty roads I travelled seven dusty roads Seven leagues, seven states To arrive where I had been Here I stopped In this hospitable land (New York) The [splitting] image of Bahia By the lighthouse at the riverside -chorus- And (whew!) a break in New York Loremil Jelon Viera (2 pioneer capoeiristas in America) Two bahianos that Bahia had lost Teaching Capoeira Capoeira, of African origins That arrived in Bahia Tiny and on all fours That grew up and large To become Brazilian -chorus- Salutations to Loremil Machado That God took back into the sky For his great legend I take my hat off to him Salutations to the Mestres present here My friends and confidants That this roda is open To all, my thanks

Cut.

The Joy of Capoeira - Canjiquinha

This is an excerpt from Mestre Canjiquinha's "The Joy of Capoeira'. It's on page 35-7. You can download it here.

I really like the tongue-in-cheek-iness of this part:

When it’s time to play around, I play around
When it’s time to play serious, I’m serious

:)

Capoeira Connection has several other Adobe .pdf documents. The link has been added to the er, 'Links' section (Roda Zone).

Cheers,
-EW

...
Canjiquinha has a laugh that I don’t know what it is
Because everything that I do
I do laughing
They say around here: Canjiquinha only knows how to play around
This doesn’t offend me
When it’s time to play around, I play around
When it’s time to play serious, I’m serious
...
We have to make joy
I am a factory of joy

Bang, Bang, Bang!

Yup, this question has buggered me for the past 2 years since I started Capoeira. How does this martial art help in self defense? Would I have the time and space to Ginga? Most importantly, what happens when I have no music? I'm dead...Nah I'm kidding. Although there are many artforms out there who specialize very much in self defense and application, I feel ours specialize more in form and performance ( please correct me if I'm wrong ). It allows us to express ourselves in dance-like styles and if you ask me, this seems to be the friendliest martial art I've encountered..I mean, how many martial arts involve non-contact?

Just as Josh pointed out, Capoeira helps our every day movements, makes us more fluid. I know when the situation arises, we'd most likely just run or find a parang and hack at the attacker but then if we have a chance, we could maybe land a martelo or sorts. So, I decided to seek out help in self defense. This is not part of capoeira, but it may help if you find yourself needing some self defense moves in the future : p

Click hereand here

*disclaimer: Its abit violent, but hey, when in a real situation, its either you fight or you die. Well you could escape too but then life's too short, lets at a little spice into it (: *

Like silent death, we stalk the night!

Hello! This is a really cool trick you can do with your verga.

Sensei Park, better known as 'Choson Ninja', sententiously meditates: "[the Choson Ninja Youtube channel] is devoted to the people who can not afford Martial Arts or have no Schools to learn Martial Arts..."

Starving martial artists. Yup, that's us, alright. And thanks to Sensei Park, you know what to do with your berimbau when the cavalaria come charging down the street.

Now let's say you're cornered in the roda, and the guy looks like he's going to chapa (you can tell because he's approaching you ass-first on all fours ;) ). Don't esquiva! You can't go under it! Escape with style!

Sometimes in the game, there is an opportunity to negotiate for space (i.e. corner the bugger). You need to move around him, but how fast can you ginga? Enter Sensei Park to the rescue with a cool ninja sidestep! Yes, it is okay to move around without ginga-ing, and how much cooler when your head stays in the same horizontal line?!

Lastly, for those of you getting over a summer fling, Sensei Park has these words of comfort (mind you, it's 10 minutes). Or you could just solve it the Brazilian way! Hmm...works for me!

Stay Sexy,
-EW