Today was the final of the King’s Cup Polo Tournament. I was not involved in shooting it; but the nice ladies from Polo Escape sent me an invitation to the event, held near Bangkok; so it would have been churlish to refuse.

Problem was, the invitation included a dress code, “smart casual”. As she who must be obeyed was quick to observe (a bit too quickly I felt), I do casual really well, but smart is a bit beyond me. I used to be able to make myself reasonably presentable; but once I stopped working, any clothes that could be identified with “office” were quickly disposed of. I now have a couple of pairs of jeans, enough T-shirts for a week, and a pair of sandals; oh, and some underwear in various stages of decomposition but that is best not discussed further.

Still, I resurrected a serviceable pair of trousers, something with a semblance of a collar; and then ruined any chance of presentability with a pair of scruffy black sneakers; my only pair which I keep for special occasions. Looking cheap but cheerful, I headed for Bangkok.

The polo events at Pattaya are relaxed and devoid of any pretentiousness. The big events in Bangkok bring out the “see and be seen” high society crowd and feel far from comfortable in their company, and not just because of my crappy clothing. I am not sure what my values are, or if I even have any, but they certainly don’t match with the sort of people who turn up to these events. I also don’t think I would be very good at being rich; mainly because, if I had a pile of cash, I would immediately spend it on one (or all) of these cars which were on display, and then I would be poor again:

Today I decided on the orange Lambo; but I might change my mind tomorrow. I am so fickle.

There was a marching band before the polo match:

And other entertainment:

Girls with hats:

And, not that many people were watching, polo:

Can’t tell you who won (I expect it was Thailand), because I had to leave early for another appointment (oh, the social whirl!), the official opening of The View restaurant on the beach next to the windsurfing club. More cars I wouldn’t mind owning:

And a load of people having a good time on the beach:

Felt more at home with the windsurfing crowd; but still slightly troubled about whether I have made the right decision with that orange Lambo.