I don't know where everyone is based, I'm assuming a mixture but I'm from Canada and studied Chito-Ryu for about 11 starting when I was 6....I am now 23 and have studied off and on since a nasty knee injury in a competition. I just spent about 6mths in England studying Goju-Ryu which had it's obvious differences but was quite similar. I now live on the german/switzerland border and am really itching to get started again but not really sure what to go for....any hints? I don't really want to get into shotokan or tkd and am not all that familiar with other styles. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Coralee

First of all, welcome to Germany (or Switzerland, depending on which side of the border you're on), I hope you enjoy your stay

If I were you, I'd simply just check out the dojos/dojangs in town. Speak to the people there and the trainer, and have a look at the type of people training. It's basically the same situation as in other countries, there are clubs that are just out to make money, others are more for brawlers, whereas there are also clubs that focus on just the sporting aspect of martial arts.

As far as TKD or Shotokan, I think it's important to go for the better club. Although there is some rivalry between TKD and Shotokan, I don't really think it makes that much of a difference. It's not the martial art that makes the martial artist, I guess.

Wish you all the best and keep us updated once you find a suitable place to train.