[Tom Hannon]

My wife wants to learn how to play Mah-jongg. She knows nothing about it and was hoping to find a rec center that taught beginners. Is there any place that can give my wife free lessons?

[skip0358]

Laurel Manor Rec Center Tuesdays @ NOON. Lessons given by Joan DeCarlo 753-1127. Wife says she was very good and very patient.Look in the Recreation News that comes on Thursdays. All clubs and activities are listed in there.

[Carol K]

My husband and I took lessons from Joan DeCarlo when we rented last July. She is very patient. Give her a try. We just bought a home this week so we have to take refresher lessons from Joan when we arrive in June. She also gave lessons at Chula Vista at noon.

[vj1213]

Tom, tell Caryl that I will go with her

[SALYBOW]

Originally Posted by skip0358

Laurel Manor Rec Center Tuesdays @ NOON. Lessons given by Joan DeCarlo 753-1127. Wife says she was very good and very patient.Look in the Recreation News that comes on Thursdays. All clubs and activities are listed in there.

We took lessons from Joan at Laurel Manor. It is very crowded and hard to learn. Joan also gives lessons at 9:00 at Chulla Vista on Fridays. It will take at least 3-4 lessons. It is a hard game to learn. We are always looking for players though.

[Barefoot]

I learned how to play MJ from Joan DiCarlo at Chula Vista on Sundays at noon. It is a much better learning environment than Laurel Manor on Tuesdays.

[vj1213]

Tom, Bobbie is a very good player...maybe she will give us neighborhood lessons

[frannieb]

Hi Bare, is it fun??

[K9-Lovers]

What in the world is it?

[Dirigo]

The lovely Diane took lesson at The Lifelong Learning College. It was a multi-week program with a small group of students. Plenty of time for questions and relaxed play. Cost was under $100.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by frannieb

Hi Bare, is it fun??

Hi Frannieb! Yes, Mah Jongg is really, really fun. I never played cards or games, so I was a really slow learner (as my friends can tell you). But I'm glad I stuck with it. There is a lot to learn, and a lot of "strategy" involved.
When I first started playing, I would play with friends for a few hours and then have a Mah Jongg headache for hours because I was concentrating so hard. But now it is just a whole lot of fun for me!

If you're a card player, you'll find it much easier to learn the game. And if you're easy going, and not a Type A, you'll find the game much easier. Some players take the game really seriously, and play for money, and are very intense. But my friends play for fun.

By the way, Villages07 on this website is the best Mah Jongg player in the whole world! And also very kind and patient.

[mom2five]

Lessons at Truman Wednesdays at 9:00 am with Sandy. Also a good group of beginners to play with when you are ready. They also get together to play (no lessons) Sundays at noon.

[TrudyM]

Originally Posted by K9-Lovers

What in the world is it?

Mah jongg is a rummy type game played with tiles instead of cards. You draw and discard tiles either from the wall or what others have discarded untill your hand of 14 qualifies you to Mah jongg (go out) . There are rules as to when you can claim a discarded tile and different hands require different payments from the loosing players.

There are several versions played around the world the US version being very different than that played in the pacific or the orient (or the military)
A goup of women in New York got tired of playing the regular verison which had runs of three and threes and fours of a kind with a final pair to make a winning hand. So they came up with the idea of only allowing certain hands to count and they would make them up and change them from year to year. So the National Mah Jongg leauge was born. They also added jokers to the set. They print a new card every year of qualifying hands and when you join they send you this years card there is an annual renew fee that gets you a new card every year. The good part is that it changes every year so you don't get bored the bad part is it changes every year so you have to get familar with the new card.

I play American style with the card with my friends at the Jewish community center here and Island style (no jokers - no card) with my family and friends from Hawaii and those that learned playing on military bases around the world.

I mention this because if you see a nice set of Mah jong tiles and want to play with most people you will need to be sure it has jokers before you buy it. There are some beautiful ivory and bone antique sets around that cost alot of money but you can't play the American style with the card as they have no jokers and that is the style played by most people.

Sorry for the run on post.

PS Many Asians gamble on Mah jongg the way others do on big stake poker.