Muay Thai Special Moments
Dear Wilson,
This past weekend, Wah got us tickets to a Muay Thai event. Muay Thai is Thailand's version of martial arts. It's a cross between boxing and UFC. Basically, you can box or kick but no floor wrestling. This was our first experience with a live fight so I figured Thailand was the best place to see something like this.
The event actually takes place in an area surrounded by little bars and the ring is permanently set up in the middle like a courtyard. It's a pretty cool set up.
Anyways, Wah got us tickets and met us at a random bar outside of the ring area. It was Erica, Cali, Wah, and I. Then we proceeded to go to the area where the ring was that has temporary 6' tall barricades. That way only people that paid could watch the fights. The cool thing about this setup is that our favorite bar was actually inside the barricades. We had gone to this bar before to play pool. The same bar that we "hid from the police" in a previous blog. So we got seats close to the ring, with tables for drinks and as a bonus, we got bar service from our favorite bartender/owner while we watched the fights. Oh and an easily accessible bathroom in that bar about 30 feet from our seats. Honestly, it couldn't have been more perfect. I felt like we were straight VIPs!
Before the fights started, Wah told us that she knows 2 of the fighters tonight. She goes to the local Muay Thai gym to train as her form of exercise. She has no intentions of ever fighting but by being in that gym, she knows the fighters from that fighting school. One of the fighters she knew was in tonight's championship for the title of this particular ring. It was a special bonus because now we clearly knew to route for her personal trainer.
By the way, a fun fact is that these fighters all weighed between 115 - 135 lbs. They were tiny ninjas that hit like fucking trucks. I have learned 2 things about Thailand. The tiny men might be able to kick your ass and the beautiful women are not necessarily women. Things are not always as you would assume around here. Mini ninjas and chicks with dicks are very common around here. Actually, it's not just chicks with dicks. The other version is even more believable. Ladyboys are a real thing and that means they have had plenty of surgeries as well as a full sex change to fool you. I have seen these "women" and some of them are pretty fucking hot to be honest. Fuck, I can't believe I just said that. Don't take this the wrong way. I'm just saying, if you are honest with yourself, they are "pretty". It's actually quite disturbing. Haha ok fuck this, I'm not talking about pretty men anymore or you guys will get the wrong idea about me. Not even sure how I got started on this topic. Back to the fights.
Ps. No, I don't want a ladyboy!
Once the fights started it was actually cooler than I thought. When these fighters kicked each other it sounded like baseball bats hitting people. Pretty impressive to be honest that they can kick that hard and also sustain being hit like that without even flinching most of the time. There were 6 fights on this night. On the 3rd fight, she knew one of the fighters. He actually came up and talked to us before he went into the ring. This was only his 2nd fight in Muay Thai. His first fight ever, he won by knockout. In this fight, he wins again by knockout with an elbow to his opponent's face. This guy was good. First 2 fights ever and he knocks both opponents out. The funny thing about this guy is he is from Canada. He moved here to study Muay Thai and trains EVERY SINGLE DAY. Hard work pays off I guess. He was beating the Thai people at their own art form.
The next fight was the championship and this is the one that Wah's personal trainer was fighting in. This man looked about 30 - 32 years old and Wah said he has been training since a young child. The flight started and he definitely lost the first 2 rounds so it wasn't looking good. Round 3 came and he came back. I think it was round 4 when he won by knockout. A very exciting comeback for us to witness. Once the fight was over, people that were routing for him rushed the ring to congratulate the winner. Wah took Cali up on the ring platform with her. It was really cool of her to include Cali in the hype and excitement.
As I stood there watching, I thought to myself about the strange sequence of events that had to happen for this all to take place. First off, we had to be in Thailand and specifically Chiang Mai, which is weird enough by itself. Then we had to meet Wah. Erica and I never go to bars to socialize but just so happens we meet Wah there on our very first outing at a very random bar. Then we became friends and get invited to these fights because she trains with the fighters. We also happen to be sitting next to our favorite bar that ironically is the closest bar to the ring which is just a bonus. Then Wah's trainer has to be in the championship AND win. Wah took a liking to Cali and is always trying to show kindness towards her so then she invites her to go to celebrate "on stage". As I watch this unfold, it was a very special and seemingly impossibly perfect moment. You could see the nervous excitement on Cali's face as she followed Wah up into the ring. I recorded this moment with my phone as it happened to help keep the memory. I never thought a Muay Thai fight night would go down as one of the best memories/events of my life. It's funny how life surprises you sometimes.
After all of the fights were over, we conveniently walked about 20 steps to the bar to play pool and have some additional adult beverages. By the way, our favorite bartender was cool with serving Cali. She had 3-4 Pina Colada over the course of the night lol. Erica and I played pool against Wah and Cali. That ended the night for us and we walked home. Another perfect scenario because all of this took place with only a 15 minute walk away from our Airbnb.