Monday 14 September 2015

Two Weeks left in Thailand

It doesn't seem all that long ago I was making my way to Manchester airport, ready to begin my 3 month Thailand adventure. Three months seemed like such a long time, and during my initial stay on Koh Phangan I quickly got used to the lifestyle, almost feeling like it would never end. But all good things must come to an end, or so the saying goes, and I now have less than 2 weeks left before I return to the UK and 'reality'. As much as I am missing my family, friends and my gym (Shor Chana muay thai), I really wish I could stay longer but I don't have the money available to do so. I will absolutely be returning to Thailand, however, at the soonest opportunity.


The original group when I arrived at Sitjaopho muay thai have mostly all left to return home. This is just a fact of life at a muay thai gym in Thailand- you make friends, get to know people, and then they leave and a new group arrives, the process starting all over again. For a few days I was the only person training in the mornings, and there were just a handful of us in the afternoons, which was nice but also made the time in between training sessions quiet and kinda lonely.
The current group at Sitjaopho with trainer Hin-Phet

However, the gym soon filled up again. And this time I have some fellow Englishmen for company, with Zach, Ben and Frank from the 'Thai Style' gym in Liverpool, in addition to Jasper and Sean from Canada. They are all really sound guys and we all get along well, creating a good atmosphere both in and out of training.

I've been feeling a lot stronger in training these past couple weeks, particularly my clinch which has always been a relative weakness of mine but which has now improved greatly. I'm looking forward to seeing exactly how much it has improved when I clinch with the lads back home. Training has also been increasing in intensity, with Eff pushing us hard. Longer runs, longer pad rounds (4 minutes instead of 3), and now 300 knees on the bag instead of 150.

Zach and Ben are both fighting at the end of next week, though unfortunately I'll have just left when they do. I've booked myself into a nice yet really cheap hotel in Bangkok for 3 nights before I leave, as there are a few things I want to do there before I return including visiting the famous Rajadamnern stadium (the oldest muay thai stadium in the world, built in 1945) and hopefully also the Channel  7 stadium, host of what many consider some of the most exciting fights around these days. I will be wishing both lads the best of luck and I'm sure they will do great.
Rajadamnern Stadium, Bangkok- the worlds oldest Muay Thai arena built in 1945

My injuries are finally starting to heal, it seems, but they are not 100% yet and I think I've mentally accepted that I wont be fighting again on this trip. Whilst I'm still training hard, I'd like to relax and enjoy myself a little bit over these last couple weeks.

Last week, the promoters from Max Muay Thai (a well known promotion) came to the gym looking for people to fight on an upcoming show in China! If I'd been 100% I probably would have gone for it. Whilst I'm not that experienced a fighter yet (4 fights with only 1 win) it would have been an incredible experience. Maybe next time.

One of the best things about the training here is Eff's understanding of the different muay thai styles and how best to apply a person's natural style. I like to fight in a mix between the technical muay femur style and the hard kicking muay tae style. Eff recommended I study a fighter called Wanchalong, a multiple Lumpinee and Channel & stadium champion. I was aware of him but had not seen many of his fights, but after watching pretty much every fight video I can find Wanchalong has become one of my favourite fighters and his style is very similar to what I am trying to achieve. Eff now jokingly calls me 'Wanchalong' in training all the time too (see highlight video below).

With such a good group of people here, both trainers and fellow students, we have been having fun outside of training too. Last Saturday, we were all treated to a Thai-style BBQ, with pork, beef, squid, spicy glass noodles and (of course) rice. I even decided to treat myself to a couple of beers.

Sunday is our only day off, but rather than lounge around doing nothing (as you might expect when you are training up to 6  hours a day, 6 days a week) we have been keeping ourselves busy. The other week myself, Ben and Zach joined a bunch of the Thai lads and their friends playing football at a local artificial pitch, which has a pretty decent set up. I used to play footy all the time when I was younger but have hardly kicked a ball in the last few years, but it was great fun. This past Sunday Eff invited us all to come with him and his familt to the Pala-U waterfall. I've already been a few weeks ago, but was happy to go again as it is a beautiful place. With so many of us going, we decided to hire a minibus rather than drive down ourselves- the journey was much easier not having to drive the 60km each way on a 125cc scooter!

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