My 1st Thailand Experience: Part 1 - Welcome to Thailand, Bao

This November, I’ll be travelling to Thailand for the sixth time. I’m currently in Hawaii, and I thought this would be the perfect time to sit down and write.

I want to share the story of my very first trip to Thailand.

I went for a few different reasons: my love for Muay Thai, my curiosity about the country, and the need for an adventure.

I was 24 years old then. I’m 42 now.

At the time, travelling from Canada to Thailand to train Muay Thai wasn’t nearly as common as it is today. I’d already had a few local fights under my belt, and I knew that Thailand was the motherland of Muay Thai and the place to be. At the time I was very inspired following Thailand’s muay thai legend Buakaw and watching his incredible reign in K-1 MAX as well as some other Thai fighters, Saenchai and Yodsanklai. Something inside me kept saying that I needed to experience Thailand for myself.  Growing up, I didn’t have much say in the decisions that shaped my life. Throughout childhood, I was constantly told what to do, who to be, and how to live.   It wasn’t until early adulthood that I finally gained a real sense of freedom. So when this opportunity came along, there was no way I was going to pass it up.

The only problem was money.

I worked a couple part-time jobs at the General Nutrition Store and in the Canadian Forces. I was making a combined total of only around $400 to $600 a month. After paying for food, living and training expenses, there wasn’t much left to save. 

So I swallowed pride, and borrowed the money from my parents to make the trip happen. My parents didn’t have much in terms of finance, and although growing up with them came with emotional and physical challenges, they always supported their children financially. Having grown up with very little in Vietnam, my parents came to Canada due to the civil war back at home, and they were determined to give us what they never had. Whatever they earned, they shared with us whenever we needed it and lending money for me to pursue this dream was one of those instances.  Thailand, here I come.

Information about Muay Thai gyms in Thailand was extremely limited back then. If a gym had a website at all, it was usually outdated and offered very little information. I packed my Lonely Planet Thailand guidebook and an English-to-Thai phrasebook and thought, “I’ll just get there and figure it out.” 

This was my first trip to Asia and the farthest I had ever flown. I watched countless movies on the flight, ate junk food, and sat around for so long that by the time I landed, I somehow convinced myself I had already lost all my conditioning.  

I arrived late at the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport and took a taxi to the nearest hotel.

Now, what should a tired, jet-lagged person do after travelling across the world?

Sleep.

What did I do?

At 2:00 a.m., operating on almost no sleep for the past couple of days and still adjusting to the unfamiliar heat and humidity, I decided to go for a run. 

At the time, there were stray dogs everywhere on the streets of Thailand, and during my run, they started chasing me down the street making me run even harder.

Not one of my smartest life decisions, or  training decisions for that matter.

That very night, I got the chills. By the next morning, I was sick with a full blown fever and lying in my bed, wishing I had never gone for that stupid run.

I had barely arrived, and Thailand had already taught me my first lesson.

Welcome to Thailand, Bao.

This is Buakaw above.  He had a huge impact on my growth as a nak muay way back when.

Rob Cox’s Top of Thailand mini-documentary was one of the videos that inspired my love for Thailand and traditional Muay Thai. Rob, the journalist featured in the documentary, would later open a gym where I would train and fight, spending a couple of months there during my second trip to Thailand.

Sitting in my hotel room @Sheraton Wakiki Beach in Hawaii writing this post to yall.  This moment feels like a very pivotal moment.