My 1st Thailand Experience: Part 2/2 - Home

This blog post is part 2/2 of the My 1st Thailand Experience series.  

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“Hey, you in Thailand? I’m at Chai Yai Gym in Chiang Mai. Come train here.” Isaac (my former teammate) tells me as I landed in Thailand. I can't remember if it was over the phone or email.

Arriving in Thailand I had no plans.  All I knew was I was here to train.

My initial plan was to go to a different gym up north but because Isaac was already here and training, I decided to join him at Chai Yai Gym in Chiang Mai.

Settling Into Life at Chiang Mai

Chai Yai Gym was in a rural part of Chiang Mai. I stayed in a guesthouse attached to a convenience store, just a few minutes down the street from the muay thai club.  

On all my training trips, I came to train, compete, and dive deeper into the art. For me, staying at one gym for an extended period felt like the best way to do that. I wanted to build relationships with the coaches and give them time to understand how I trained, what I struggled with, and what I was working toward.  There’s plenty to gain from visiting different gyms and learning from different coaches, too. But if you plan to fight, you should commit to one.

I don’t remember exactly what I paid, but it wasn’t much.  I think it was around $300-$400 CAD for 1 month of accomodation and training.  Good luck finding those prices now.  17 years ago and there weren't as many foreigners there for fighting so everything was so cheap.

^Nothing glorious, but doesn't have to be.  Stay here for a couple of months.

^No toilet paper :/.  Cleaning with water is cleaner anyways.

^The little grocery store below my guesthouse. I had no idea how much this place and the people here would end up meaning to me.

 

^This is the Journal my then GF Nga made for me. It really helped me track my goals and thoughts.  I really encourage you guys to try journaling. 

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Later that day, Noom, the gym owner, picked me up and brought me over to the gym - we walked 5 minutes down the to get there.  The gym itself was a cozy size. A boxing ring, a few heavy bags, and a concrete floor where you can shadowbox and lift weights. Nothing fancy, but who needs fancy?

^Chai Yai Gym.

^You see on the wall there.  These fighters were previous champions coming out of Chai Yai.  The golden age of Chai Yai Gym was during the 90s.

^A lone heavy bag, and where some people would hang out post training at the table there.

^That's Noom.  Noom purchased this gym from the founder and have been running it for some years before I arrived.  Chai Yai Gym has closed down.

^That's Isaac and me looking tough.  Isaac was my former teammate at TKO Fighting Arts in Kitchener Canada.  He didn't stay as long as me at Chai Yai, but we had some memorable adventures in the short time we were there together.

^Kru Kob to the left, and Chelsea to the right.  Chelsea had great western boxing.  Something you don't see from traditional muay thai fighters in the past.

^Post class group shot of our team.

^We trained 2 times a day (morning and night), 6 days a week.  

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There were young Thai fighters training and living at the gym. One of them was Anik, a teenager who weighed around 120 pounds. I remember him having really good technique.

The kids and teens slept in bunks at the gym. From what I remember, there wasn’t running water where they stayed. They shared a big tub of water and used a scoop to fill their buckets for washing and cleaning.

The living conditions were pretty rough, but that was everyday life for them. My understanding was that some of these kids had been sent there by their parents to fight and send money home. It wasn’t necessarily a life they had chosen. I was there because I wanted to train and experience Thailand. For them, there was a lot more riding on it.

Training was traditional Thai style and the typical training format. We ran about seven to eight kilometres in the morning, came back to shadowbox, then got our rounds in with the trainers. Pad work, bag work, knees and push kicks. Pretty standard stuff.

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“Relack, Relack!  Not Baland!”

Isaac had just finished doing pads with Kru Yoi when I arrived. He wasn’t a big fan of Kru Yoi.

He was big on proper technique and adamant on us doing it his way. And I don’t blame him. A lot of us foreigners hadn’t been training since we were little like the Thai fighters had. It wasn’t second nature to us. If you weren’t doing something right, he would let you know.

I liked him.

At the start, he would stop me after what felt like every combination, give me this look of disgust, and say a combination of “Sabai, sabai. Relack, relack! Not baland!”

Relax and stay balance.  That was what he was trying to say.

I generally am bias and have a hard time with older Asian men who come across as critical or controlling. I’d experienced that with some of the men in my life growing up, so I tend to keep my distance from anyone who have this traits.

But for some reason, I didn’t feel that way with Kru Yoi. I really tried to listen to him. Even with all the scolding, I somehow saw a father figure in him. It felt like he cared about getting me better. I didn’t get the feeling he was actually mad at me. He was passionate about Muay Thai, and he wanted us to learn it properly.

I have to mention that he was very charismatic and quite the character. Thank you to whoever posted this little highlight of Kru Yoi:

Kru Yoi, my first coach in Thailand.  The legend.  A couple years later I revisited Chai Yai to see him.  I was told he got ill and moved down south.  I hope him well.

Life Between Training Sessions

Outside the gym, I kept it simple.  Partially because I didn't have money, but also because I wanted to stay focus on the grind.

I went to the nearest internet café to kill time by playing games and getting in touch with my girlfriend at the time, Nga, who is now my wife. This was before smartphones and Wi-Fi were everywhere, so internet cafés were how I stayed connected.  I also did some blog way back when too :)  If you guys wanted to read it, you can find it here: https://on-baoy.blogspot.com/

And nearly all internet cafes had air conditioning. That alone was a good reason to hang around.

The rest of my free time was spent trying as many variety of food at different places, getting massages, exploring Buddhist temples, visiting night markets and getting to know the people around me. I love food, so the local markets became a regular part of my routine.

Chiang Mai is known for khao soi, a rich coconut curry noodle soup topped with crispy noodles. I was lucky enough to have the woman who owned the convenience store (attached to my guesthouse) cook it for me. My and this woman built a strong bond at the time.  I called her Madam.

^The internet cafe I visted daily down the street. You just don't see this anymore.

^Visiting temples were another one of my favorite past times.

^This ain't pho, but I cannot resist noodle soup in street stalls.  This cost me less than a dollar at the time.

^Getting a sak yant as a souvinir.  Check out the video here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tq0x9hUZRCU

^I'm Asian, and eat a lot of wierd things.  But I couldn't stomach dried grasshoppers.

A Family Away From Home

The connection I made with the locals was the most memorable part of my trip.

Madam and the locals in the small town I was living really took me in. They brought me out to eat, cooked for me, taught me Thai, and drove me around to see things. I spent a lot of time with them, I felt like I belonged there.

Madam even let me work in her convenience store for a short while. That forced me to speak Thai to everyone who came in. I was also paying a tutor to teach me twice a day, so I was picking it up pretty quickly.

Unfortunately all the Thai speaking that I learnt is mostly long gone now. 

There was something special about being around people who were happy to have me there and accepted me for who I was.

Madam lived alone in a house across the street. She told me that both of her sons had passed away from illnesses as adults. Looking back now, as a father myself, I can only imagine how painful that must have been.

At the time, I was looking for acceptance and a sense of family. She had lost her two sons. I think we found some comfort in each other, and over time, became close.

Eventually, she asked me to be her godson.

I said yes.

Out of everything that happened on that trip, the relationship I built with Madam was the most special part for me.

^Madam and I.

Feeling at Peace

General anxiety is something I struggle with, even to this day. I have learned to manage it better with practice,  but it wasn't always so easy dealing with it growing up. However, I can remember two times in my life when I felt a real sense of inner peace. That first trip to Thailand was one of those times.

I had a routine, I trained each morning and night, and with my free time I spent it connecting with the locals.

As a young adult, I was reserved and shy. Those are not unsual personality traits for Asian boys growing up in a traditional household like mine. In North America, being outgoing, outspoken, and assertive is often celebrated. You are encouraged to speak up, speak your mind. But in the household I grew up in, those same behaviours could be seen as rude or disrespectful.  With Madam and the locals in town, I felt comfortable being my naturally reserved self. I could be quiet and still feel included, without having to speak up or try to make myself heard.

I distinctly remember waking up one morning and noticing how calm I felt. My anxiety was low, and I wasn’t worrying about everything. I was just happy to be there, on my own, doing what I loved.

Everything felt right.

That morning has stayed with me all these years. Every now and then, back home in Canada, I find myself trying to find my way back to that feeling.

^It didn't matter the day or night, we always got together to enjoy good company and good eats.

Fighting in Chiang Mai

A few weeks into training, they found me a fight at a stadium in Chiang Mai. I had been training hard, so I took it.

I felt confident and at peace. Looking back, I think that had a lot to do with how well I performed. I was putting in the work, but I also felt good about myself and felt supported by the team. Going into those fights, I wasn’t as nervous as I’d been before and this was reflected in my performance.

I ended up fighting twice during that stay, a few weeks apart, and won both fights.

^My first opponent.

^No physical warmup needed when they drench you with that much Namman oil

^Victorious.  Thanks to the the Chai Yai team

^The morning after.

^A little scratch is ok.

A Simple Life I Still Remember

The rest of the trip carried on much the same way.

I trained. Internet café. Good food. Hang out with family. Explore temples and night markets. 

I had never experienced a place or a feeling like this before, and I soaked it all in.  

I went to Thailand to train and fight, and came home with a second family, and a better understanding of myself. Even now, writing about it reminds me of what I valued about that simple life and what I want to make more room for today.

Thank you for reading my story.  Happy travels, wherever you’re headed.  Wherever your next adventure takes you, I hope you come home knowing yourself a little better and with a clearer sense of what matters to you.

-Bao