Epic Saturday: Part Two

The Hash is a weekly club that has been described as the following: runners with a drinking problem or drinkers with a running problem. Apparently, the Hash is a worldwide phenomenon that has not found its way to Wisconsin (considering the drinking element involved in the club, this is surprising). There are Hashes that occur every Saturday around the world.
Here is how it works in Yangon, Myanmar. Every Saturday at 3pm, expats meet outside the Yangon sailing club. Someone from the Hash club has preset a running course somewhere in the city and has marked it with bits of shredded paper. Hashers can either run the preset course or walk it. The length of the course depends on who has set it, but it can vary from 3 miles to 6 miles. Now the course is not clear-cut as there are false trails to lead you astray and cause you to run more, but that is just part of the fun.
The Hash is not a serious, competitive event but a chance for fellowship and fitness. People of all ages and fitness levels take part in the Hash ranging from families with children and dogs, to middle age folk to a few senior citizen expats. On our virgin hash, there were no children, but there were people in their 20s to people in their 60s and a good number of dogs. People on this Hash ranged from teachers from the three international schools in Yangon, people who work from NGOs and people who work for the embassies. There were around 20-25 people at this particular hash but there have been times when there were 50-60 people. Since the Hash involves some drinking, there is a $2 fee for every hash. A small price for the fun one has on the Hash.
Andrew took part in the running hash, while I took part in the walking hash. The running hash is more physical while the walking hash allows you to see more and take pictures, which I will share. Since the Hash is set in a different part of the city every week , it is a great opportunity to get know parts of Yangon that you normally wouldn’t see.
The Hash itself feels like some sort of weird Monty Python sketch. The Hash begins and the runners take off and the walkers take off, following separate paths. The runners can be seen trucking through the village and then backtracking because they took a false trail, while the leader of the walking harsh purposely takes the most obscure routes through the city or village, crossing bamboo bridges and rice paddies. Halfway through the Hash, (around 45 minutes to an hour) there is a meeting point set up for both runners and walkers. Here the beer truck meets us for a beer/water break.
Then the 2nd half begins and walkers and runners go their separate ways to meet once again at the end. The end this time was at the ruins of a Portuguese church from the 1700s. The end is celebrated by a circle ceremony with the singing of silly songs and drinking of lots of beer. People can be punished and/or recognized for whatever reason at the end of the Hash by having to stand in the middle of a circle and down a small glass of beer while people sing a drinking song. The grandmaster of the Hash runs the end ceremony and adds his wit at every moment. Like I said earlier, the Hash is silly and bizarre and feels like it came out of a Monty Python sketch (something about all of those British and Australian accents.)
To Conclude: we will definitely be partaking again!