Filed under: Culture, media, Outside Thailand, Travel, work | Tags: atolls, Beer, beer tasting, boxing, Butaritari, Central Pacific, China, Hong Kong, islands, Kiribati, newspaper, paradise, porn, porn star, Republic of Kiribati, SCMP, South China Morning Post, South Pacific, South Pacific islands, sports, sports reporting, Travel, travel writing
Butaritari, Kiribati
As far as desirable jobs go, travel writer must be up there with sports reporter, beer taster or porn star – in other words, what could be better than to be paid for doing something you love?
So you can imagine how pleased I am to finally get published as a travel writer, in yesterday’s South China Morning Post. The piece covers a wonderful adventure I had on the remote island of Butaritari in the Republic of Kiribati.
It was a real buzz when I got the message that they had bought my article, and even more so when it was printed yesterday. While I have never (not yet?) been a porn star, and while my beer-tasting experience is extensive but never recompensed, I have done my fair share of sports reporting, namely in boxing, which is a sport I love. There was a big buzz when I made my paid-for boxing writing debut, too, but travel writing is an even bigger deal.
Filed under: Sport | Tags: amateur boxing, Bangkok, boxing, English, Jitti Damriram, Jitti's Gym, MRT, muay Thai, pro boxing, Ratchada, Ratchadaphisek Road, Sport, subway, Thai boxing, Thailand
Jitti Damriram
I had a handful of amateur boxing matches when I was teenager and the sport has remained a passion for me ever since, even though I have not competed since I was 19 – 13 long years ago! But with boxing a national obsession in Thailand, I decided to start training again last year – not with the intention of actually fighting again, but as a means to keep fit while enjoying my favourite sport.
I started attending Jitti’s Gym on Ratchadaphisek Road last October. It offers both muay Thai and western boxing tuition and boasts a number of pro fighters. The coaches are all ex-pros, most in both codes, who can speak enough English to guide the foreigners who attend. There are sessions in the mornings and afternoons, the latter of which I attend, and the workout area is in the open-air. Now, boxing training is among the most physical of sports workouts at the best of times, and the intensity increases dramatically when conducted under the blazing tropical afternoon sun – for three hours!
If anyone else is interested, I do recommend Jitti’s. It’s easy to find, very close to Ratchadaphisek subway station, and more details can be found at the gym’s website.
