Discovering Saigon and Conquering Challenges with Tường Uy at the Techcombank Ho Chi Minh City International Marathon

I'm Tường Uy. Today I want to write about running the Techcombank Ho Chi Minh City International Marathon, a race I'd been waiting a while to do.

I remember that morning pretty clearly. It was still early, the air was cool and clean, the kind that wakes you up. I got to the start line really early, and then I kind of froze when I saw the crowd. 17,758 people. I had to stand there a moment just to get used to a number like that.

When the horn went off, the whole mass of people started moving, and I went with it. I ran through streets in Saigon I already knew, except that morning they looked completely different. The city in the early morning is strangely quiet, none of the usual noise. I ran along Bach Dang Wharf, past the ships docked there. I crossed Ba Son Bridge, where you can see a whole stretch of the city from up high. Then I finished at Empire City in District 2.

I'm not going to say it changed me or anything that big. But there was one thing I figured out while I was running: running isn't only about your legs. It's also a way of seeing the city you live in from an angle you don't normally get.

Uy Nguyễn (Mike)