Jiu-Jitsu with Panda Odyssey

It is a good thing in life to try new things and do things that scare you. My friend Rob is big into Brailizan and Japanese jiu-jtisu (BJJ/JJJ) and had my interest peeked in this. Since I was going to be back in Canada I asked if he could introduce me to it.  Rob is getting ready to travel the world and train in BJJ/JJJ. I think the trip he is about to do pretty amazing and helps put perspective into my own journey. It is important to do things in life that you will be able to look back and tell stories on. I gave him as much advice as I could and wish him well on his upcoming trip. I have included a link to his blog which I highly encourage checking out. 

http://pandasodyssey.blogspot.ca/ 

I really had no idea what to expect with this class and I was a little nervous. I quickly realized how amazing and dangerous it is. I have a new found respect for people who have trained in martial arts. I tried to learn as much as I could in the limited time I was there. I will have to look into this when I finally settle down a little. I was really thankful having a friend like Rob introduce me to this and really take the time and patience with me. Some of the moves they showed me to me were quite complex for my first class but thankfully I didn't die. I was shown various moves which I was thankful to learn and who knows could come in handy some day. I would highly recommend trying out at least one class. It is ok to be nervous but the people in his class were all very welcoming and willing to help out. The instructors were amazing and would come by to give pointers and demonstrations. It was easy to tell this was a tight knit community. The class sizes were small which means lots of personal help. There was one female in the course and if any other female is nervous about trying this out because of all the guys don't be I am sure this girl would just throw the guys around. 

The next day we went to a yoga class where I found my body had a few more creeks and cracks than I had originally thought. This year for me will be a lot of getting into decent shape and really trying new things out as it is;

My Life

My Choice

My Time

Tuna Tom

Macaulay Point Battery - Esquimalt BC

Sometimes when you are traveling you never know what you will find. I went for a walk around just to check things out and walked through a few nice parks. When I was at Macaulay Point I suddenly stumbled upon something interesting. I started walking around this area and found a piece of Canadian history. I won't go into many details but have provided some links before for more information including a youtube clip of someone talking about it. To me it was a tremendous find and made me quite thrilled to find a piece history that most people do not know about. I am upset with myself for not taking more photos. You never know what you could come across when you go for a walk. To steal a line from my dad "I would love to hear the stories these walls have seen". 

This was one of those moments where it is amazing to just explore without any knowledge of the area. Sometimes it is nice to know of places you want to see but I love stumbling upon things while I travel. The one question I like to ask is what will happen next or what will I discover next. You never know what is around the corner I am not shy about exploring new areas or trying new things after all it is;

My Life

My Choice

My Time

Tuna Tom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elfuxpPurhs

The Macaulay Point Battery is a historic gun emplacement in Victoria, British Columbia. A fort was built here between February 1894 and October 1897.^[1] The site is now a park.

http://acitygoestowar.ca/the-armed-forces-in-victoria/the-navy-in-victoria/man-the-guns-the-coastal-batteries-of-victoria/

Esquimalt BC

When people ask me about Canada and the winter time it is really difficult to answer. I went from weather that was around -10 to -15 and snow to rainy and sunny weather with temperatures around 5 to 10. It is impossible to answer what is the weather like in Canada when you are looking at such a big country it would be like asking how deep is the ocean. I really enjoyed my time on Vancouver island.

Lots of blogs to come including being introduced to Japanese & Brazilian jujitsu, a 2 day road trip in New Zealand, some Canadian history and of course Japan. Right now I am going to finish my tea and get ready to explore Japan as it is;

My Life

My Choice

My Time

Tuna Tom

Fernie skiing day 2

It snowed all day the day before and all night so on my last day I woke up to lots of amazing fresh powder! I tried out some high performance big old fat powder skis and the runs down the mountain I made that day were some of the best. What a difference it makes when you use good quality gear but that is a topic for another day. For now I don't feel like writing much so I will leave this with a few pictures of my Fernie ski trip as it is;

My Life

My Choice

My Time

Tuna Tom