Anna's Bangkok Trip

Anna had a conference in Bangkok and managed to do all sorts of interesting things, including going to watch Muay Thai, or Thai kick-boxing.

She went to Lumpinee stadium, a small venue run by the Thai army.

She says it was a raucous crowd, almost all men. She wanted to sit up in the cheap seats, but the ticket seller wouldn't let her. She and her friends sat ringside instead.

According to Wikipedia, Lumpinee is one of the few places in Thailand where gambling is permitted and it takes place at the second level. The betting is done by hand-signals, as on a stock exchange trading floor.


The boxing is accompanied by live Thai music.

As a bonus for having expensive seats, she and her friends got to go see the winner up close.

Wikipedia says that the boxers cannot weigh more than 100 pounds, must be over 15 years of age and that the weight difference between the boxers cannot be more than 5 pounds.