Well it's here: my last day in Vietnam. I've enjoyed my time here so much--it has been one of the greatest experiences of my life! And guess what? I'm actually going to add in some pictures to my blog today. Aren't you just so lucky?
First thing in the morning we went to the UEF sports complex to compete with the UEF students. Previously, I was under the impression that we were going to be playing our friends (D, Julie, etc.) but I quickly realized we were playing the actual TEAM of the university. Safe to say we expected to be pummeled. Anyway, first Julie led a "flash mob" (I put this in quotes because it was more of a choreographed and expected performance) and we were encouraged to join in. Which I did for about half a second. It was really funny because our guide Tin Tin was really into it and very excited. He kept trying to drag me and the girls in to join the students in dancing.
After the dance medley, the games began. Soccer was fine, we lost to the UEF students, but the girls won their game. I even scored a goal... which is really surprising considering I'm me. We did better at basketball because our sheer physical dominance. I'm like above-average-ish height in America, but I was same height as the whole UEF basketball team. Seth and Garrett (our tallest guys) were just dominating.
This afternoon I stopped by the Mariamman Temple (it's one of three Hindu temples in HCMC). It was really interesting to see how practicing Hinduism is different across populations--the colors and depictions of the gods were very different from what I'm used to at home/in South India. I've never been particularly religious or spiritual, but the temple did feel like a home away from home. It's always there for me, which is comforting. We also walked by a beautiful park with lots of stone sculptures. There were three guys practicing on their flutes; the added musical ambience made it such a serene and perfect situation.
Tonight we had our farewell dinner on a boat that did a small tour along the Saigon River. The view of the HCMC skyline was breathtaking... unfortunately my phone died. I'll have to get a picture from someone else. It was a great way to end the trip. I have to be up in two hours to go to the airport... Ugh.
First thing in the morning we went to the UEF sports complex to compete with the UEF students. Previously, I was under the impression that we were going to be playing our friends (D, Julie, etc.) but I quickly realized we were playing the actual TEAM of the university. Safe to say we expected to be pummeled. Anyway, first Julie led a "flash mob" (I put this in quotes because it was more of a choreographed and expected performance) and we were encouraged to join in. Which I did for about half a second. It was really funny because our guide Tin Tin was really into it and very excited. He kept trying to drag me and the girls in to join the students in dancing.
After the dance medley, the games began. Soccer was fine, we lost to the UEF students, but the girls won their game. I even scored a goal... which is really surprising considering I'm me. We did better at basketball because our sheer physical dominance. I'm like above-average-ish height in America, but I was same height as the whole UEF basketball team. Seth and Garrett (our tallest guys) were just dominating.
This afternoon I stopped by the Mariamman Temple (it's one of three Hindu temples in HCMC). It was really interesting to see how practicing Hinduism is different across populations--the colors and depictions of the gods were very different from what I'm used to at home/in South India. I've never been particularly religious or spiritual, but the temple did feel like a home away from home. It's always there for me, which is comforting. We also walked by a beautiful park with lots of stone sculptures. There were three guys practicing on their flutes; the added musical ambience made it such a serene and perfect situation.
Tonight we had our farewell dinner on a boat that did a small tour along the Saigon River. The view of the HCMC skyline was breathtaking... unfortunately my phone died. I'll have to get a picture from someone else. It was a great way to end the trip. I have to be up in two hours to go to the airport... Ugh.
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