Ultimate Continued

The path out onto my own private isthmus

The view from my lakeside hideaway

Muay Thai in action

The next contestants getting the gloves on.

Since I had the luxury of riding back to town, I immediately grabbed a cigar and decided to walk out to the local reservoir and find a shady spot to enjoy the afternoon. A mere two kilometers later, I was parked on a little isthmus out on the lake, watching the kites hunt in the updrafts when I wasn't reading my book. Absolute solitude, a warm afternoon, a good book and a fine cigar. What else could one ask for?

Lunch, that's what. I stopped at a little lakeside restaurant, which amused and befuddled the local folks thee. Not a farang establishment. The menu was in Thai script, so we had to go verbal. I managed well enough and had a fine repast of fried rice, shrimp and veggies while the geckos hunted in the rafters and my fellow diners got a jump start on the evenings festivites. Let's just say that the bar was kept hopping.

On the walk back, I was treated to some fine crowd action at a local Muay Thai boxing match. There is an outdoor training gym just up the road from my place and today was a match day. The crowd was in fine form and the boxers were doing their best. Muay Thai is a combination of boxing, kicking and elbow and knee blows all rolled into one martial art. The light weights that I watched were going after it fast and furious. Yet another bonus to the day.