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Old 10-27-2005, 05:34 PM   #49
Camille Lore
Dojo: Lehigh Fukasakai
Location: Northeast Pennsylvania
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 39
United_States
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Re: Belt System Question.

Interesting discussion... When I practiced aikikai in Portugal as a kid, everyone had different colored belts. Ranks below brown wore a white hakama. AFter brown, a black one.
Now, in the dojo I practice in, we have 4 belts- white, blue, green, brown and black. Anyone can wear a black hakama, our sensei said that he thinks it's hard for a black belt to all of a sudden adjust to wearing a hakama. He doesn't require people to get themfor awhile though,said. I got one because I feel kind of naked without it!
When I went to the yoshinkan demo though, I wore my blue belt and no hakama. I asked beforehand what to wear, and Ron said hakamas were reserved for sandan and up, and to wear my white or blue belt, whichever I felt comfortable with. I mentioned it somehow to my sensei and he told me to wear my blue, so I did what he said.... I wouldn't have minded wearing my white tho.
However I do like being able to tell when I meet an uke about where they are in their experience....
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