I spent last weekend in South Germany attending an Okinawa (Matayoshi) Kobudō seminar with Ōshiro Zen’ei sensei. It was actually the first time I met and trained under Ōshiro sensei. The style isn’t new to me; I’ve been training in Okinawa Kobudō since 2007.
My wife and I had the great pleasure of interviewing Ōshiro sensei, and he was very friendly in answering our questions. We also asked him about the Sansērū Kata of the Shōdōkan and his training under Matayoshi Shinpō sensei.
After many years, I also had the chance to see my friend Andreas Quast again. We last met in person at my wedding party in 2018 – Andreas came all the way from South Germany to attend. Now it was my turn to visit him in South Germany.
We talked a lot about Okinawan Karate and Kobudō, including Yamannī-ryū, Yabu Kentsū, Hanashiro Chōmo, Bō-Jutsu in general, and our future plans.
Our last stop was the Hohenzollern Castle in Hechingen, where we spent two days for my research into Jūdō history about the Hohenzollern. Sadly, it was without benefit.