Where do I play table tennis when I travel? I play everywhere

Where do I play table tennis when I travel? I try to play everywhere I go!

One aspect of table tennis that I like is that when I travel, I can usually find a place to play.  

I'll list here both of my home clubs (BCC - Beach Community Center and BTTC - Broward Table Tennis Club) and all the different places that I've played in the last few years.  Often when I travel, I call up the local club and take a table tennis lesson or try to fit in a game. 

I mostly play in the Ft Lauderdale Beach Community Center. It's about 5 minutes from home. I play three times a week there. There are a few exceptional players who play there.  Most of the crowd are good players. I've made it in the last two years from the bottom of barrel up to just a bit better than the average player there.  It's social so sometimes, I'm playing in doubles games with mixed levels.  But I'm more into the intense training these days. 

Ft Lauderdale Beach Community Center

I also go to the Broward Table Tennis Center where I both take lessons and play with different people. It an amazing table tennis center run by Carlos Rodriguez. It's near the corner of University Blvd and Sterling Drive (more info) so it's a full 45 minute drive. My sometimes coach is Terese Terranova, the lady in pink below.

In the building where I live (Auberge, Ft Lauderdale), there is a table but it's not really set up for competitive play. There's space but depending on the sunlight, the lighting can be be a problem. 

Travel and Table Tennis

My wife likes to travel and do touristy things. She likes to shop much more that I do.  So when we travel, I often visit a club. 

 

Here's a quick list of my ping pon travel visits so far.

Ft Lauderdale,  Florida - My home club, where I've entered a few tournaments, Broward TTC. Terese Terranova. 

Washington DC , WDCTT - The DC Table Tennis center is in NW DC and is owned by Khaleel Asgarali. I visited in 2022, 23, and 25.  

Gaithersburg Maryland -  The Maryland Table Tennis Center.  2022 

NYC -  A ping pod center around W 48th street in Manhattan.   2022 

London - Eli Baraty and Guy Ben-Aroya in London. March 2024, Sept 2025. eBaTT in Oxgate (West London)

Paris, TT16 - Nicolas Brocard in the 16th arrondisement on the Blvd Lannes. Played March 2024 and March-April 2025. Nicolas has a 15 table facility for table de tennis at  the Muette centre sportif.  I also try to indulge in my other sports when I travel. In Paris, where we go frequently, I have both a boxing trainer, a yoga studio, and a gym right next to where we stay in the 7th.  

Girona Spain - Maestro Elizabeth Granados Artacho (who also helped me with my Spanish) and Tennis Table Girona have their own articles on this blog.  July 2024

San Sebastian, Spain.   La Escuela de tenis de mesa, Club Atlético San Sebastián. July 2024  

Kendell (Miami) - Ping Pod, a session with Neslihan Özdemir (girlonthebikeNY),  Oct 2024

Charlotte, NC TT - a session with Bill Englebreth. He's widely travelled as both a TT referree and umpire. Oct 2025.

 

Khaleel Asgaral of WDCTT - Wash DC

WDCTT has 5 tables and a robot
Washington Table Tennis Club

Guy Ben-Aroya - eBaTT London

Charlotte Table Tennis Club
Bill Englebreth - President

- - - - -Notes from a Lesson at eBaTT with Guy in W London  ---- - - - 

Backhand: Much more wrist. Cock it fully and hit with the wrist. Less arm.  
Forhand: Open up at the waist and legs with paddle down, arm straight down and behind the leg. Move from the waist with a salute motion (much less arm). Mind the distance between my body and the ball. Spin the ball (don't hit it). Shift weight to right leg as set up, back as part of the hit.

- - - - -Notes from Playing in Brickell PingPod  ---- - - - 

I was down in Brickell, a part of Miami, this week for a few things and rather than sit around, I booked into the Pingpod center in Brickell, it was a nine minute walk from my hotel. In reality, it was longer since the center is not exactly where the address suggests it should be and the signage is not so clear.  But once I found it, very nice.  Small, there are only four tables but a great space. 

I had booked a coach for beginners, Neslihan Özdemir (girlonthebikeNY). I told her I just wanted to practice. We  mostly played games.  She  ran me through some drills and reminded me, as everyone does, to stay low, to get ready for the next shot, to hit forehands with my body (not just my arm), and that the more reliable shot is usually cross court (not down the line). 

She taught me a new serve which was great. I had been hitting my slice serves pretty hard with tons of spin. She showed me that a much more understated serve with just a little backspin, hit short, and with a shorter softer stroke was also possible and often effective. Cool!

At one point, I did ask her about serve returns since it was on my mind. She made two points, one of which was new to me.

1.  Watch their paddle at the point of contact with the ball,
2.  Stare at the ball and you can actually see the spin on the ball. I've tried this and so far, I have not made any progress. But I'll keep staring at the ball and see if it comes into focus soon...

At the ping pong, we only hit the record button only once, that's the video point above. 

I would have hung out for the social hour  that was a little later except I had a previous commitment.  

 

Brickell PingPod Center, Miami

 

--------------

Elisabeth Granados Artacho, Girona Spain

Paris - Nicolas Brocard (old Center - pre 2025)

West London (Oxgate) - Eli Baraty eBaTT

Want to read more?
Getting Started playing Table Tennis (includes videos of me playing in 2023)
Playing Table Tennis when I travel and at home - This article
Returning Serves and Dealing with Spin
Table Tennis in Girona with Professor Artacho
My TT Tournament Performance as of 2023 

Tai Chi -Ten Form Yang Tai Chi by Vijay Son

In my condo building, I've got a chance to learn some Tai Chi since we have an onsite course. I'm looking forward to it.  Here's the first form that we are learning (updated 2/1). 

The instructor is Vijay Son, Tai Chi Master / Insight Mediator.

 

(to see this full screen, try double clicking on the Youtube logo)

Here's the steps with some of the key elements explained.

1. Starting. Stand feet together, balance, step shoulder width left (still facing forward), balance, and slightly bend knees. Bring arms up with hands facing down (like a zombie), then dip hands.

2. Repulse monkey. Swing left hand back behind (like a windup) and then punch forward with an open hand while the right hand (hand facing up) pulls back as if elbowing a monkey who is behind us. The shoulders twist to follow the two hands. Now punch forward with the right while left arm elbows backwards.

Repulse Monkeys
Hit forward, elbow back

3. Brush knee, push. Step out to the left (foot points to left) and open hand punch with the right to the left while left hand (face down) pulls back to near body. Shoulders stay square. Step back to the middle facing forward. Same to right.

4. Pat the Horse's Mane (or Big Ball). Hold imaginary ball with left arm over it, right arm under. Step left (foot points to left) with right hand slowly launching ball while left hand releases early (face down). Watch ball depart. Reverse to right.

5. Cloud Hands. Right pushes clouds across (inward block) with palm facing towards face, repeat with left, both hands continuing circle while moving back to front position. Step left (foot facing forward) doing Cloud hands again. Step in so facing forward with another cloud hands rotation. Same to right.

6. Golden Rooster. As return to center, lift right foot forward with right hand put like a rooster's comb over the head and other hand pushes down to the side. Hold. Repeat to other side.

7. Heel Kicks. Cross hands over the body and raise them to neck height (palms facing out) while lifting left leg. Then, snap kick (ie straighten knee) while extending hands to each side. Then bring foot down (bending at knee) and place foot back on ground while dropping hands. Do the same to the right.

8. Grasp Bird's Tail. This involves three pushes to each side, each different. This starts with a repeat of Pat Horses Mane (or throw ball) so you push to the left. But then, bring hands close together as if grasping a rope and pull it, putting weight back on the right foot and turning slightly towards the right. Flow back to the left a 2nd time to the left this time with the hands together (left hand further out, right hand behind it). Flow back to center without turning. The hands started straight out and then pulled back with both elbows bending. Now flow to the left a 3rd time as if you are pushing a beachball down into the water. Flow back to center and repeat to the right.

Grasp the Birds Tail:
Three Pushes to Each Side

9. Cross Hands. Come back to center crossing hands (palms facing back, left closest to the body) at neck height.

10. Close. Step in with right foot and uncross hands by circling them down, out to each side, back into chest, short pause, and then push down and exhale.

You're done. You might be refreshed, relaxed, strengthened, grounded, and with your yin and yang back in balance. If not, repeat the form more meditatively trying to bring your full chi into play.

Cross Hands and Close

  

 Note that there is another video is of him when he is teaching and he is presenting it backwards (left to right) so students can follow. it only goes to Golden Rooster :  Video link - https://youtu.be/zOJiLQS9G48   

(Also learned: sword strike forward, rotate,...?)