Muay Thai in Chiang Mai

Muay Thai in Chiang Mai
Dec., Jan., 2014

Muay Thai is the national sport and cultural martial art of Thailand.  It was developed hundreds of years ago as a form of close-combat that utilizes the entire body as a weapon.  It is referred to as "the art of eight limbs", using eight points of contact…fists, elbows, knees, and shins.  

We decided to become participants in this cultural activity.  This is our first day of training.

Perr, our trainer, (who was himself, a champion fighter) obviously enjoyed our "moves".

There was much laughter….

by all of us.

But it was not all fun and games…kicking was much easier than receiving the kicks…from both sides.

We were excited to go to our first match where Perr was in the feature fight.  There was a band...

To change things up midway…we had four blindfolded fighters.  This was quite entertaining.  I got great video of one of the fighters knocking down the referee!

Due to the huge Buddhist history in Thailand, it is considered to have a spiritual aspect to it as well.  Thai boxers usually perform rituals before beginning a match.  These are to pay respect to the fighter's trainer, as well as the guardian spirit of Thai boxing.   This is Perr before the match, which he won:)

We got serious after witnessing the greatness of our trainer.

We tried to mimic his every move.

And gave him our heart and soul…however, we were spending a great deal of time getting to and from this gym.  We had to find something closer to home.

Then we found Hua…he became our new teacher and friend.  He too, was a champion fighter, and built quite a bond with Jim.  So far, Jim is the only one who gets hit!

However, Wendy is the only one to hit the mat…several times!

I had to step it up and show him I meant business.

I put on my fighter face.

And Jim was learning to steer away from those hits.

Alison was always a formidable force.

And after Hua worked Jim to a pulp…he worked hard to revive his new-found friend.

Hua's son, Forket, is nine, and also a champion.  He picked us up for our first training session, and we rode with him to the gym in the back of his dad's pick-up truck.  He brought us water when we were thirsty.  And he was a big part of training Jim.  Forket was not shy about hitting Jim to teach him the ropes, but he did it with love and respect.  We already feel like champions, just getting to know this family.  Hua's wife and baby, are at the gym everyday.  Between sparring in the ring, Hua is cuddling his new little baby.  It is sometimes tough to believe that the heart of a fighter lies within the gentleness we see in these men and women.