Or to put it another way, imagine running in just over a day from Ho Chi Minh City to Mui Ne. That is what he did on September 28. One of the most celebrated long-distance runs in the world, the Spartathlon traces the footsteps of Pheidippides, an ancient Athenian runner who in 490 BCE was sent to Sparta before the Battle of Marathon to seek help in the war against the Persians. Ancient Greek historian Herodotus wrote that Pheidippides ran the whole distance and finally arrived in Sparta a day after leaving Athens. Quang is the first and only Vietnamese to have completed the race. "It was really the most difficult race I have run. It is the longest distance I have ever run, and the cut-off time was short. Not only was the distance a big challenge, the weather was also very different from what I expected," he told VnExpress International. He had trained for about three months, clocking 120 km a week in Ho Chi Minh City where he currently lives, and in the mountains in the nearby Ba … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s ultra-distance dynamo’s Greek feat
Homestay o da lat
VnExpress Marathon: math professor, architect, consultant in the mix
Of more than 5,000 runners participating in the VnExpress Marathon (VM) 2019 in the south central beach town Quy Nhon Sunday, very few are likely to be mixing business with pleasure. One of them is William Cherry, a 53-year-old Californian who is currently a professor of mathematics at the University of North Texas. He joined VM 2019 because there will be a joint meeting between the American Mathematical Society and the Vietnamese Mathematical Society taking place in Quy Nhon around the same time. "I am helping to organize one of the parallel sessions at that meeting, and I thought participating in the race would be a good way to get some exercise before the meeting opens," Cherry said. The professor said what he loves about Vietnam is "the high value that the Vietnamese place on education and their willingness to help people from all economic backgrounds achieve success in education." William Cherry poses at Ha Long Bay, northern Vietnam, while attending a mathematics event. Photo … [Read more...] about VnExpress Marathon: math professor, architect, consultant in the mix
Rescuers install zip line to get people stranded in Central Highlands flood
Prolonged heavy rains have inundated Lac Duong District. The flooding swept away the bridge over Da Nghit Stream, trapping 41 people on a farm, including seven children. Major Doan Manh Toan, deputy head of the province's fire police and rescue service, and dozens of his men put up the rope over the stream using pulleys. Major Toan and a colleague put on a safety harness on one of the marooned people before rescuers on the other side of the stream pull him in by hand. "The rain continued to pour for days," the victim said. "On early Thursday morning, floodwaters made the bridge collapse. We were trapped and completely surrounded by water." A man crosses the stream on the zip line. The rescue team had attempted to use motorboats but the rapid flow of the water precluded it. After five hours all 41 people were successfully rescued from the farm. Toan said; "The rope was the only solution at the time amid the pouring rain and rising flood level. The situation was very tricky." In Bao … [Read more...] about Rescuers install zip line to get people stranded in Central Highlands flood
Thailand works to attract more Vietnamese tourists
At a temple in Bangkok (Photo: Xinhua) Bangkok (VNA) – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) plans to tap second-tier cities and provinces in Vietnam to bring in more first-time visitors to the country. Bangkok Post newspaper quoted Director of the TAT’s Ho Chi Minh City office Napasorn Kakai as saying that Hai Phong, Nha Trang of Khanh Hoa province, Da Lat in Lam Dong province, and Can Tho city offer direct flights with affordable tickets to Thailand. She said the TAT since October has been working with agencies in Nha Trang and Can Tho to promote tour packages to Thailand, and 1,000 people have already bought the packages. Next year, the agency plans to partner with Vietnamese online travel agents like TripU, the travel application provider operated by Vietravel, and iVIVU.com, Vietnam’s first online hotel and tour booking website, to let people book their trips online. Thailand has been a top destination of Vietnamese travellers since 2017. Last … [Read more...] about Thailand works to attract more Vietnamese tourists