One of the most memorable moments I’ve had on the Race was our arrival to Vietnam…
We arrived in Ho Chi Minh City after a long bus ride from Phnom Penh, Cambodia. There in the bus station, we had to make quick decisions because it was only a matter of minutes before we were going to be on another 23 hour trip to our final destination. We ran to the restroom, bought dinner foods, got cash…
Still 30 minutes out from the time our bus was scheduled to leave, a burly, middle-aged man, we assumed to be our bus driver, came in speaking harsh Vietnamese words to us, grabbing bags, and motioning for us to follow. Only half our team was back from running errands… Those of us there, quickly gathered our things and followed the man…
It was usually customary for us to stow our big packs beneath the bus and carry our smaller ones onto the bus with us. Well, this time around, we were being told that none of our bags could go with us on the bus. We all began rummaging through our packs for essential items we’d need for the 23 hours ahead…
Once we were settled in our seats, those of us who purchased dinner, began eating it while it was still hot. It didn’t take long and we heard again some more harsh words from the same man. Along with his words, he kept gesturing to us… He would rub his index finger under his nose and make a disgusted look on his face… We finally got the picture – we could not eat our hot food because it was going to stink up the bus!
The bus finally pulled out of the station as we all felt a little bewildered and frustrated with all that had just happened… As we tried to settle in to our seats, the lights and music came on. There was a music video blaring, presumably of some famous Vietnamese singer, and the lights on the bus were reminiscent of a dance club setting. We were on our way in the “party bus!”
Then we began to smell smoke… cigarette smoke… The man who scolded us for eating our “stinky food” was now sitting at the back of the bus with the window cracked smoking…!
…I looked over at some of my teammates and saw that they were Vlogging about the whole ordeal, laughing all the way… It was then that my nerves were calmed and I, too, began to simply let go and laugh at the situation!
So, in all this I learned that things don’t always turn out as you expect and you can either choose to be anxious, angry, or amused. In all this, we chose the latter and it made for a pretty entertaining ride all the way!
