Finally made it to South Vietnam, in Saigon, a safe haven from those damn dirty Vietcong. Oh crap. They're standing right behind me, aren't they? And I'm in Ho Chi Minh City, not Saigon? This could get hairy (cues Billy Joel's "Goodnight, Saigon").
I arrive with no plans and no knowledge of HCMC, so by virtue of telling the taxi stand worker, "hotel - big street - many hotels," I luckily land myself on Pha Ngu Lao, the main thoroughfare of the expat/backpackers district in HCMC. It overlooks a beautiful park, a smaller cousin of famous Tao Dan park to the northeast. All sorts of soccer- and badminton-related games being played here. Tromp from hostel to hostel, looking for my critera (internet, AC, single room) and land in Sin Sin Hostel - curious if the name portends anything about my stay. I drop my things off and meander about. Right off the park and the main drag, so I'm pleased with my locale. This area is at least majority westerners, in terms of people walking in the streets/eating at streetside cafes. There's a pleasant, lazy feel to the area - most people stroll around in sandals and sunglasses, likely on holiday and without care. A welcome exhale in comparison to Hanoi.
Here I encounter a game that combines soccer and volleyball (apparently, this), played in sides of 3 with a gym-class-softball sized, wickerish ball. The actual "court" is being used by the intense and experienced - as a foreigner in hiking boots, I don't even get a sniff. I set my sights a little lower, on the "practice" game being played beside the court. Here, five Vietnamese adroitly juggle the wicker ball in a wide circle, rarely dropping it. I'm nervous about joining, a) from my experience on Cat Ba (read here) and b) from my gear (hiking boots and long pants), so I watch for a bit. A new guy shows up, who's here in all his "gear" - fresh-to-death Asics (the shoe of choice for this game), new football kit, headband - and after a short evaluation, I decide I'm clearly more skilled than he, so I ask to join.
They're surprisingly friendly about letting me join, and quickly widen the circle. I stick to headers - as anyone who's played an soccer with me knows, my forte - to get acclimated. The wicker(ish) ball is pliant and easy to control, so I get more daring with my footwork. My moves work out, except when I get too cute. I get into a rhythm with the group, and we play for hours. The ringleader coaches me on when to use particular body parts to receive/send balls. There is no score, no time, no count kept, but the intensity is high. When someone errs, everyone is disappointed. When an especially long rally is kept, it ends in applause - from the group, and a few bystanders as well. I more than hold my own. Once the ball is played well out of the circle, I decide to call it a day. The fact that the group quits makes me feel both guilty and complimented, so we play for a few more rallies. Afterward, I'm offered a disgusting watery sports drink/tea mix, and try to ascertain the name of the game we're playing. The group's best English speaker - fresh-to-death - brusquely informs me of a few things: ball/game - "gao-may" (actually cau may). From Thailand1. Cheaper to buy ball there. America strong. I ask the best place to eat, and he is gravely confused. Fair enough, worth a shot. As I thank everyone profusely for letting me play, our skilled ringleader says, in his best sign-language-English: "Feet - good." Approval from sensai make grasshopper proud.
1 - Where apparently the game is called sepak takraw, see article above
I arrive with no plans and no knowledge of HCMC, so by virtue of telling the taxi stand worker, "hotel - big street - many hotels," I luckily land myself on Pha Ngu Lao, the main thoroughfare of the expat/backpackers district in HCMC. It overlooks a beautiful park, a smaller cousin of famous Tao Dan park to the northeast. All sorts of soccer- and badminton-related games being played here. Tromp from hostel to hostel, looking for my critera (internet, AC, single room) and land in Sin Sin Hostel - curious if the name portends anything about my stay. I drop my things off and meander about. Right off the park and the main drag, so I'm pleased with my locale. This area is at least majority westerners, in terms of people walking in the streets/eating at streetside cafes. There's a pleasant, lazy feel to the area - most people stroll around in sandals and sunglasses, likely on holiday and without care. A welcome exhale in comparison to Hanoi.
Here I encounter a game that combines soccer and volleyball (apparently, this), played in sides of 3 with a gym-class-softball sized, wickerish ball. The actual "court" is being used by the intense and experienced - as a foreigner in hiking boots, I don't even get a sniff. I set my sights a little lower, on the "practice" game being played beside the court. Here, five Vietnamese adroitly juggle the wicker ball in a wide circle, rarely dropping it. I'm nervous about joining, a) from my experience on Cat Ba (read here) and b) from my gear (hiking boots and long pants), so I watch for a bit. A new guy shows up, who's here in all his "gear" - fresh-to-death Asics (the shoe of choice for this game), new football kit, headband - and after a short evaluation, I decide I'm clearly more skilled than he, so I ask to join.
They're surprisingly friendly about letting me join, and quickly widen the circle. I stick to headers - as anyone who's played an soccer with me knows, my forte - to get acclimated. The wicker(ish) ball is pliant and easy to control, so I get more daring with my footwork. My moves work out, except when I get too cute. I get into a rhythm with the group, and we play for hours. The ringleader coaches me on when to use particular body parts to receive/send balls. There is no score, no time, no count kept, but the intensity is high. When someone errs, everyone is disappointed. When an especially long rally is kept, it ends in applause - from the group, and a few bystanders as well. I more than hold my own. Once the ball is played well out of the circle, I decide to call it a day. The fact that the group quits makes me feel both guilty and complimented, so we play for a few more rallies. Afterward, I'm offered a disgusting watery sports drink/tea mix, and try to ascertain the name of the game we're playing. The group's best English speaker - fresh-to-death - brusquely informs me of a few things: ball/game - "gao-may" (actually cau may). From Thailand1. Cheaper to buy ball there. America strong. I ask the best place to eat, and he is gravely confused. Fair enough, worth a shot. As I thank everyone profusely for letting me play, our skilled ringleader says, in his best sign-language-English: "Feet - good." Approval from sensai make grasshopper proud.
1 - Where apparently the game is called sepak takraw, see article above
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