With its unique rules showing many philosophies of the Eastern people, Go is attracting numerous players in Nha Trang City.
With its unique rules showing many philosophies of the Eastern people, Go is attracting numerous players in Nha Trang City.
Reportedly, a Go board has 19 horizontal lines and 19 vertical lines, forming 361 intersections (called points) which symbolize 361 lunar days. The four comers of the board symbolize the four seasons. Players play Go with 181 black playing pieces and 180 white pieces (called stones). Once placed on the board, stones may not be moved, but stones are removed from the board if captured.
The board is considered as a common land. The winner is the one who occupies a larger area of land. Unlike the Chinese chess and chess, the players are the “king” in a Go game. The players can place the stones at any points on the board. The stones will be captured when they are surrounded by four opposing stones. However, the most important thing in a Go is to use one's stones to surround a larger total area of the board than the opponent.
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| Young people palying Go in spare time. |
Although the Go movement has not strongly developed in Nha Trang, it has recently attracted a large number of young players in the city. Playing Go, the players can learn many useful things. Nguyen The Khang, student at Nha Trang College of Cultural, Arts and Tourism, shared “I have played Go for more than two years. This sport not only brings me pleasure but also helps me to learn about the philosophy and cultivate my mind. The impatience, composure and perseverance are all shown through each move. The Go teach the young people who are strong and independent the patience.”
The fastest time for a Go game is about 30 minutes. However, there are still some games lasting to 7 to 8 hours. Therefore, the hasty people are not impatient enough to consider each move for such a long time.
Nguyen Dinh Trong, leader of a private business in Nha Trang City, said about the usefulness of the Go “When I play a Go game, I consider the moves for not only one stone but also for tens of stones in order to occupy a larger area of the board than the opponent. That is also the method I often apply to my business which requires a long-term strategy and a high sense of patience to gain the success.”
According to Tuan Linh, student at Nha Trang University, at present, the Go tournaments are organized in just some big cities like Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Can Tho, etc. In Nha Trang City, more and more people like playing Go; however, most of them learned to play Go by themselves because there is no place in Nha Trang City teaching Go. “We hope that there will be Go classes and Go tournaments held in the city to popularize this sport as well as create an opportunity for the go lovers to learn and exchange skills. Go is really a useful entertainment game which is suitable for many ages,” Tuan Linh shared.
H.N
