Chiang Mai: Muay Thai

I was sort of expecting something straight from a campy eighties action flick when I showed up at the Kavila Muay Thai Kickboxing Stadium. You know what I’m talking about. An eyepatched bouncer here, some loose livestock there, throw in a chicken wire fenced ring and Jean Claude Van Damme and we’re gold.


So I was really surprised when I was treated to a full blown cultural show.

I suppose, as with many other athletes, Thai kickboxers are a superstitious bunch. The fight starts off with a ritual dance performed by both fighters, which includes a quick prayer at each corner of the ring.

Each round is accompanied by traditional Thai music played by a three man ensemble
(one on a drum, one on cymbals and one with a flute that sounded more like a bagpipe). The fighters tap their feet and bob their heads to the rhythm as they box, though they let up on it in later rounds due to fatigue.

The fights are for the most part bloodless with fighters taking most of the damage from knees to the kidneys. It certainly looked painful anyway.