Return to Ho Chi Minh City

Hey guys,

So this past weekend was another assortment of fun, excitement and general chaos. Read on!

On Saturday there was a one-day hat tournament hosted at RMIT’s fields by the Saigon Ultimate Club. This is the same organization that organized the Vietnam Hat back in December, and I went to Manila with some of them as well. Anyways, it was really good to see so many old friends, like Felipe, Tuan Do, Vu Tattoo, Drian, Zero and Nhi, and as a bonus both Stephen and Trevor would be coming as well! Yes, the entire American frisbee playing contingent would be there. Efforts to have us placed on the same team were sadly defeated.

Anyways, I was placed on team Yellow, the same color I had for Vietnam Hat. There would be four teams of about twelve people each – Black, Red, Yellow and Green. Yellow team was pretty unfairly stacked. Phuoc, Trung, Trung, Vu Anh Vu, Zero, Quang, Hoa and Nhi are all really good players, and we had enough depth and solid backups that rotations were never an issue. Frankly I didn’t have to do too much and we were still really good.

All photo credit goes to Diep Chi. Seriously, these shots are baller

Yellow team

Three members of team yellow, Nhi, Trung and Huy

Our first game was against Trevor’s team, Green. They were pretty sloppy and had a lot of drops, so we pounced on those pretty quickly.

Next up was our game against Drian’s team, the Red team. They only had a handful of experienced players, but they ran a lot and wore down our defense. Still, they couldn’t handle our offense, and we pulled out another game.

Finally we played Stephen’s team, Black. This game was brutal. It wasn’t necessarily because of Black team’s skill, no disrespect to Black. This game was awful because of the heat.

Phuoc throws the disc

Drian handles, marked by Trevor

Zero pulls it in

Favorite picture of all time? possibly

One of the big downsides to playing ultimate in Southeast Asia is the appalling heat. One might assume that after nine months in Vietnam, my body would have adjusted to the heat. But the thing is, one of the big adjustments you make in Vietnam is not going out during the hottest part of the day. From about 11:30 until 1:30, you do not go outside. Or if you do, you only go by motorbike. You would never walk anywhere, or god forbid run in the middle of the day. Vietnamese people don’t do it, why would you? I’m not trying to commit suicide.

In Vietnam, tournament organizers try to adjust for that. They try to have games only in the morning and afternoon, with a looooong lunch break during the hottest parts of the day. But you know, nothing starts on time in Vietnam. So sometimes your games get pushed back. And then you end up playing ultimate at noon with the sun high, reconsidering your life.

I don’t think I’ve ever played a game where the weather so dramatically affected people. The definition of working hard went from “running hard” to “running,” period. Simply the act of going from a jog to a run took the greatest deal of willpower under a sun that felt like it was frying your brains for breakfast. Luckily we had a little more gas in the tank, and we were able to slip by Black.

Then it was time for a delicious lunch and relaxing in the shade. I have to say, the food in Southeast Asian tournaments is so much better than in the U.S. In the U.S., you get a crate of bagels and bananas, and even that is grudgingly given. In Asia, you get a fully catered buffet meal of rice, noodles, chicken and pork. Delicious has been called, no contest.

After lunch it was time for the semifinals. First up was Green, Trevor’s team. Green played a lot better this time around, and the game was a lot closer. However, a couple big plays from our team turned things around and we got past them to the finals.

Layout Ds! 

Phuoc catches an in cut

Zero gets huge

The women of team Yellow

In the finals we would face Black, Stephen’s team. This game turned out to be pretty anticlimactic. Most of Black was injured, and I saw three different players cramp up during the same point. No idea why, extreme dehydration? Anyways, an exhausted Black proved to not be much of a challenge, especially with Zero suddenly deciding to play out of his mind, and we walked over them for the victory.    

Felipe presenting the awards

Black Team, the runners-up

Yellow team, the champions!

First time I've won a tournament. Liking the feeling.

And then we threw Saigon Ultimate Club's President in the air a few times. Good times

Stephen won MVP for the tournament, there were a bunch of other awards, and I got my medal! It was awesome.

Apparently being named MVP means you get dunked in a barrel of ice water? Not sure I understand. Or that Stephen appreciates it.

Good tournament

That evening Stephen, Trevor and I went to Andrew’s (Trevor’s friend) house to play boardgames! We played the Game of Thrones boardgame, which was fantastic. If you’ve ever played Diplomacy, it’s a lot like that game except a bit more nuanced. The Game of Thrones boardgame is a lot like the show, with a lot of political maneuvering, backstabbing and battles. Except there’s less sex. And fewer dragons. Maybe they’ll fix that in the next edition.

Anyways, after the Baratheon invasion of the north, the Martell siege of Dragonstone, the Tyrells seizing Lannisport and the Greyjoys behaving incredibly erratically, House Martell seized the victory at approximately 2 am. Yeah, we party hard in Vietnam.

The next day Jess and I (who were sharing a hostel room) woke up at 12:30 pm. Oops. Curse of the hostel room with no windows. Anyways, we were awoken by the housekeepers, and then Stephen called us to inform us they were going to a sushi bar with Trinh (a girl who plays ultimate) and a bunch of Trinh's friends. Sushi bar brunch? Absolutely.

After brunch, I went to go get some shirts made, and then we went to shoot some pool. Andrew (Trinh's boss) is one of the sickest pool players I have ever seen, it was amazing the shots he was making. Then we all went to see Iron Man 3. That’s right, international release meant I got to see it before all of you back home!!! It was pretty fun, and I won’t spoil anything.

After seeing the movie, we all went back to a beer pong bar. Yes, a beer pong bar in Vietnam! 

Complete with a standard rack, and waiters bringing you fresh beer and picking up your errant misfires. Oh, and a team America table. Definitely a favorite.

AMERICA!!! F*** YEAH!!!

After several games among myself, Stephen, Jess and Trinh, Stephen and I challenged some of the waiters to a game. 

In action

Team Vietnam made some early moves, and played well throughout, but Team America was simply too dominating. USA!

Team America vs. Team Vietnam

The next day I packed up everything and headed back to Ben Tre after a delicious farewell lunch of South Indian food with Stephen, Jess and Trevor.

For the next few days I balanced different social obligations, getting dinner with Mrs. Thuyen’s family, and Mr. Luan’s family. I also got to spend some time with Khang, who came back from Can Tho to spend the holiday with his family. I met his friends, most of whom speak very good English, and all of them were very friendly and charming.

Khang and his friends

Another highlight was visiting the house of one of my students, An. An almost never speaks in class, and is very shy. However she’s always very nice, and she has invited me over to her house before. It was wonderful to finally see her house, and to meet her very nice family who are wonderful cooks.

My two companions, Xuyen (2nd year) and An (1st year)

An's home

With An

With her father

Because of the holiday, I am only teaching for two days! So, one of those days has been going well, and teaching tomorrow as well. A little weird having so much free time, but I’m starting to like it. And next week Andrew comes to visit, and my friend Zach will be coming to see me run a 10k in Phu Quoc! Fun times promise, so stay tuned!

Peace,

Jefferson  

PUPPY!