Having met Nils many years ago at Tai Chi Caledonia and having spoken to friends who had attended his event in Hannover, I decided to attend his event in April 2024. I am so glad I did, and wish I had done it before and hopefully will be able to do it again.
His studio is self contained and sits in an area of Hannover full of bars, cafes and shops of all sizes with plenty of accommodation nearby. I took the short walk from the central train station but there are plenty of trams and buses for those with more baggage or tired legs.
The event is over 5 days, with formal teaching in the mornings and free push hands in the afternoon; however information about push hands improvement was freely available for those who wanted/needed it throughout the day. The morning sessions divided into three groups aimed at levels of skill, however a lack of experience, or a wealth of skill, in no way excluded you from any of the classes. Each day was a new day and you were under no obligation to stay with one teacher throughout the week. Extra morning sessions of Chi Gung were also there for those that wanted a nice start to their day.
The free push hands was well organised, with plenty of partner changing. Nils has developed a ‘set of rules‘ to make beginners feel safe and free to ask questions and ask for advice, without feeling pressured and overwhelmed by their partner.
Saturday night was party night! after some nice singing, and some Tai Chi, Bagua and Chi Gung demonstrations the beer and wine started flowing, the disco got going and everyone had a great time. Sunday morning was a quieter morning!
All in all, a great event, a lovely event to explore push hands and internal skills. I would like to thank everyone who attended a huge thank you for making it a event I would happily revisit in the future. A special thanks for Nils and his team for all their hard work.
YouTube Playlist of this Meeting
We will add more videos with the demos, interviews and impressions to this playlist over the the next weeks.
Author: Tim Bradley
Images: Gabi Kannenberg
