boxing and buckets

The pictures below are from a Muay Thai boxing event we attended last week and this past weekend in Ko Pha Ngan. The boxing was rather enjoyable - much more interesting than last time I went in '06. Many of the fights were well contested and the crowd was really into it, which always makes it better. We saw one knock-out out of the ten fights and there were even skirmishes in the crowd... After the fights we made our way to what is supposed to be some of the best Pad Thai in Bangkok. I found it quite delicious, although perhaps not the best ever.

Ko Pha Ngan lived up to the expectations. We arrived early Saturday morning and spent the day relaxing at the hotel in anticipation of the long night that awaited us. After a thunderstorm that had us worried about the evening's plans, we finally made it to the party on Haad Rin beach just after midnight. I'll let the pictures do most of the talking, but it was an 18-year old's dream come true. And for a 30 year old... it was still rather entertaining to be a part of. Buckets of alcohol, lots of music and Besides the monthly full moon parties, Ko Pha Ngan seems like a beautiful island with long stretches of soft sand and palm trees in every direction. Worth visiting even if you don't attend the parties and it's certainly somewhere someone could decide to drop everything and call home. Not that I would ever think of doing that...