No, it’s not a strip club. It’s a martial arts supply store in Boston’s Chinatown, at 38 Kneeland Street. Go in, wander upstairs, and engage the owners in conversation. It’s fun!

I needed to pick up a pair of kung fu pants, so figured I should go check them out. They’d been highly recommended by various fellow students, as well as places online. They have the standard complement of martial arts accessories, albeit with a stronger focus on Chinese arts, as well as a rather impressive collection of martial arts texts.

The store appears to be affiliated with the Nam Pai Academy, which holds classes next door. Both soft and hard styles are practiced (Yang and Chen Tai Chi, Yi Chuan, and Hung Gar), so the staff is pretty knowledgeable. They certainly are friendly enough, and more than happy to discuss various aspects of martial arts and internal medicine.

I took some time to talk to one of the people there, and he discussed reflexology briefly with me. He demonstrated with a couple “magnetic soles”, which use pressure points and magnetic energy to improve bodily force. Was there a difference? Sure, I felt a difference. Was it convincing? Not entirely; I tend towards the skeptical, but I didn’t feel like asking, “let me try it this way or that way”. Besides, I know that he has a vested interest in getting more students for his school, so wouldn’t be surprised if he used a little exaggeration. Go there and give it a whirl and ask for details. They appear very open to discussion about it.

On the flip side, I did touch arms briefly with him, which Wing Chun practitioners know can tell you a good deal about someone intrinsically. To me he appeared skilled. No, I didn’t do chi sao or anything like that; contact is often enough to tell you a bit about how they move. (By the by, if that seems a little too mystical for you, I recommend you check out blink by Malcom Gladwell.)

I definitely like this place. There’s a good feel to it, they offer items with more of a Chinese flavor (rather than the standard Japanese and Korean-style focus), and they have a good knowledge of various arts. I’ll probably be visiting again, if only to browse through their library of books.