About 60 pieces of Chinese porcelain, dating to the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, are on display at Beihai Park in Beijing. The antiques are collected by Fei Yuliang. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Unlike many antique collectors who possess a business background, Fei started his career as a Chinese martial artist.

He started learning kung fu at age 5. He won a championship in Jiangsu province at 13. By 22, he had a good hold on both Shaolin kung fu and tai chi. In 1985, he decided to continue his profession in Europe.

"I wanted to blaze a new trail and introduce traditional Chinese martial arts to an international audience," says the 63-year-old.

But starting a new life in a foreign country turned out much harder than he had thought. When he first arrived in Rotterdam, Fei had to learn Dutch from scratch to blend in.

Fei opened the first Chinese kung fu academy in the Netherlands in 1988.

In 1996, when martial arts was listed as one of the national sports in that country, he was appointed the head coach of the national team. His son, Fei Baoxian, has won three gold medals in world wushu championships.

Fei Yuliang developed the hobby of collecting antiques while teaching kung fu in the Netherlands about 30 years ago.

The first antique he bought was a pi xiu, one of the four mythical creatures in ancient China, including the dragon and phoenix, which delighted him.