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<\/p>\nHaving spent over four months in Thailand I was well overdue to experience a live Muy Thai fight event in a local stadium.\u00a0 Last Saturday with no real plans I decided I would do just that.\u00a0 Rather than purchasing online I went to the local stadium, and with the help of a friend, I chatted up the stadium owner (who loved Americans).\u00a0 Within a few minutes we had two ringside tickets for under half the price.\u00a0 This was probably the only time where I received an actual \u201cAmerican Discount.\u201d\u00a0 In all my past travels the \u201cAmerican Discount\u201d resulted in a 20% price increase.\u00a0 Either way, I was excited to witness one of these events live.<\/p>\n
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On the way to the stadium that evening my plan was to get dinner somewhere along the way.\u00a0 \u00a0I noticed a nice Irish Pub.\u00a0 I\u2019m not one to pass up an Irish Pub, especially in Thailand where I was well overdue for a change in cuisine.\u00a0 Corned beef, potatoes, and a couple Chang beers was a perfect change indeed.\u00a0 The pub would also be a great place to hang out, eat, and talk with some locals who were also attending the event.\u00a0 To add even more perfection to this scene they had Moto GP on the TVs in the bar.\u00a0 It was the perfect environment and just a short walk to the stadium for the fights after.<\/p>\n
As we entered the stadium and sat in our seats I began chatting up the people to my left.\u00a0 They were from Australia, a country I was very fond of and had traveled extensively.\u00a0 It didn\u2019t take long before we were engrossed in conversations of travel, Muy Thai (which I really knew nothing about), motorcycles, and pretty much everything under the sun.\u00a0 I made a comment to one of the Aussies wearing a NY Yankees hat (I hate the Yankees, obviously).\u00a0 I gave him a hard time about the hat as we continued to joke back and forth. It turned out the Aussie with the Yankee hat was fighting that evening so it\u2019s probably good I didn\u2019t go too far with the berating of the stupid Yankees.<\/p>\n
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As the fights were about to begin everyone stood for the Thailand National Anthem.\u00a0 Instinctively I faced towards the Flag of Thailand with my hands clasped in front of me in a respectful manner.\u00a0 It was at this moment I noticed everyone was facing towards me and not the Flag.\u00a0 I quickly turned 90 degrees to face the same way as the others when I noticed why this was.\u00a0 In Thailand you face the giant portrait of the King during the Anthem and not the Flag.\u00a0 The Aussies knew this and had a good laugh as they made the same mistake during their first attendance of one of these events.<\/p>\n
The fights were a blast to watch.\u00a0 The fighters were very respectful of each other and the customs of their country.\u00a0 We watched maybe 15 fights or so throughout the evening.\u00a0 Sadly, our new friend didn\u2019t win his match, but it was cool to hear the word \u201cAustralia\u201d mentioned over the loudspeaker amongst all the other words in Thai which I couldn\u2019t understand. \u00a0It was a pretty solid Saturday evening and I was able to check seeing a Muy Thai fight off my Thailand to do list.<\/p>\n