We entered the public park during sunny noon. Everyone was around enjoying the park. Some running, some badmitten some relaxing some working. We walked around a bit and chose a spot and on the way rented a mat. I placed the mat under a tree in the shade and went to sit down when all of a sudden I felt an itchy burning sensation!

I looked down and realized I had place the mat upon a fire ant hill. They marched up my legs in full attack. They went up my pant legs and my shirt up to my neck and even in my hair! I danced around shouting and whooping swatting and sweeping.

My friends were confused and I managed to say "ANTS" as they looked closer they too were shocked to see them all over me. As I was jumping around and whooping I tried to move the mat. To no avail nothing would stop them from coming. Just as I got some off me there were more! My friends were swatting me, hitting me and we were all trying to get the ants off me.

I moved over to another spot away from the tree and the hill attempting to escape. There were more and more, they were in my shirt, on my neck and in my hair. I swatted, shooed, swept and everything else I could try to get them off of me. Their little bites stung me and my word, they were fast!

The whole time there was a couple just meters away laughing and as I looked around the park, I had drawn quite a bit of attention to myself. I could just see it, "what on earth is that Farang doing?" I just pointed and said "ANTS!"

Finally they were gone and there seemed to be no more sign of them near my mat. I sat down still a bit paranoid for a while. After about 5 minutes of calm I watched a young Thai couple walk toward the same tree about to do the same thing as I. I got up and rushed over there and in English said : no, you don't want to sit there, ants!

The hilarious couple across the way started laughing again as the man I was warning realized the ants and seemed much more frightened of me and my shock shouting English at him than he was concerned about the ants. He swooped his mat and moved away looking at me like a crazy Farang. By this time, the couple was laughing so hard the girl was covering her mouth and had collapsed into the boy as they looked at me in a most pitiful way.

This whole scene took about 1 minute and by that point I was definitely crazy and should be avoided. I was just happy to have the ants off of me!

Now I know what it means to really have ants in your pants!