Day 12 and 12.5: It's not goodbye, it's only hen gap lie

     It was a bittersweet last day in Vietnam. We started the day with some friendly competition with our counterparts at UEF. First off, the highly anticipated basketball game. Since we had not met any Vietnamese student taller than 5'5" we thought this would be an easy win, but once we got to the court their basketball team was actually just as tall as we are. Well there goes our only advantage, because none of the American students played competitive basketball for years. Despite the UEF students taking it easy on us, they easily won by about 10. It was a lot of fun nevertheless. Once the soccer game started however, the tides turned. The Plus 3 group had a number of soccer players who took over the game and it was a pretty lopsided victory. And of course after the game, we started a much deserved, albeit slightly obnoxious, "U-S-A" chant. After the games, we exchanged gifts with the students with whom we had become closest. I brought some Phillies gear for my friends, who hopefully did not realize how awful they are this year. I couldn't let them think that Pittsburgh was a better sports town than Philadelphia. Here is a picture of the team in action.

These are some of my new friends rocking their new Pitt and Phillies gear. 

     We got the afternoon off, which most of us used to swim, catch up on our blogs, and start packing. Then at 6 we gathered in the lobby for a little photo shoot. Everyone who bought a new suit got to wear that while the girls wore their new Ao dai, a traditional Vietnamese dress. You're welcome for the upcoming eye candy.

This is my good friend, Bo, who I became very close to

My friend wanted to wear a bow tie and I was more than happy to oblige

I don't like looking at cameras apparently

Matching with my boy Dan

Bryan Shultz looking classy as ever

We think that we're cool

     Our farewell dinner took place on a boat on the Saigon River. After the meal, the boat took us around on a tour of the harbor. It is really cool to look at the city skyline and think about how much it has changed in the past 40 years. 

A bunch of us decided to have our Titanic moments

     We left that morning at about 3 a.m. Before we left, the students took a short visit to a fountain near the hotel to soak up the last moments of our time here. Some of the UEF students came to airport to see us with some tearful goodbyes. I am going to miss this place and am already planning a return. These were two of the best weeks of my life. I will never forget the experiences and new friends that I made here. 18 hours on a plane later, here I am back at home. Hen gap lie, Vietnam. I'll see you again someday.