Baan Chang Thai
House of Thai Artisans
Learn classical Thai arts from Ajarn Kridakorn Sodprasert (Ajarn Lek) in a quiet, friendly environment.
On the beaten track, but a little hard to find, Baan Chang Thai is a great place to learn Muay Chaiya. It's where I learnt, and many people travel each year (both Thai and western) to learn from Ajarn Lek. Not only is it a place for learning Muay Chaiya, but other Thai arts such as tapestry and puppet making are also on the menu.
Lessons include:
- Art for kids
- Painting with water-colours
- Classical Thai Tapestry painting
- Classical Thai Puppet making
- Muay Thai Chaiya
Learning at Baan Chang Thai
Ekkemai 10/2, Sukhumvit, Bangkok
Ajarn Lek's method of teaching Muay Chaiya gave me great respect for the art, as he focuses of the basics and fundamental techniques so that:
1) None of the details (and there are many) that make the style strong are missed
2) You gain the body feel required to be able to use the style effectively and intuitively
3) As in all traditional martial arts, part of the time spent learning is also to enable you to grasp some of the underlying spiritual and ethical nuances, and hopefully shape you into a balanced person (who will not misuse the art, and have a bad attitude.. ie go round with your mouth flapping wildly)
4) THERE IS NO GROUNDWORK (grappling) which is emphasized by the hard floor that we train on! Muay Chaiya is primarily a striking art, and this is what it is good for. There is a lot of hand work, and a good Chaiya fighter is just as good with his fists as he is with his feet.
5) Whilst the teaching is very rigid on technique, Ajarn Lek considers that once you have the Chaiya 'heart' then a lot of the details become second nature, and true expression of the style can begin.
The ambiance at Baan Chang Thai, is very friendly, and anyone is welcome to come and learn. They even have an open door policy, so that people (as long as they are respectful etc) can come and train with the equipment at any time for free. Unfortunately there are only a few people at Baan Chang Thai who train enough and have the experience to be able to really compete or fight professionally, but there are many capable students.
People of different styles are welcome to come, and the students are always keen to learn details an insights from other kinds of Martial Arts. Likewise, many types of people come and learn, from young to old, both men and women, who want to learn Muay Thai, but are put off by the image of modern Muay Thai camps.
Class Prices
All classes are 2 hours long, and all students have free use of equipment and gym at any time of the day.
Standard Public Class
Friday and Saturday evening, 5:30pm-7:30pm (extra training optional)
800baht for 4 classes (new students must buy a set of 12 classes)
Special Class
Every Sunday evening, 5:30pm-7:30pm (extra training optional)
5,000baht for 12 lessons.
Private Lessons
One on One lessons arranged as convenient.
10,000 baht for 12 lessons.
About Ajarn Lek
He's a great guy with a big heart, who is passionate that Muay Chaiya should be taught in the traditional manner as he was taught not only by Kruu Tong, but by a Ajarn Kaet Siriapai (please check this blog for a more detailed account). As a sidenote, I do consider Ajarn Lek to be a master in the classical sense, as he not only teaches Muay Thai, but several other traditional Thai arts and so he is a well balanced and rounded individual, and not just someone who teaches fighting for a living! This may also account for Baan Chang Thai's lack of exposure, and difficulty to find.
Contact Details
T: +66 (0)2 3913807
M: +66 (0)818128087
E: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
A: Ekkemai Soi 10/2, Sukhumvit 63, Bangkok, Thailand
Map
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