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Oh, Wow! It's Like One of Those Things You See on TV!

After the relatively close departure times of last week's leg (to Ulan Bator, Mongolia), it was unlikely that there wouldn't be some spreading out of the teams, and that is definitely the case. First-place finishers Peter and Sarah were only a few minutes ahead of second place team Tyler and James, but nearly two hours separated the front of the pack from the back. However, a bottleneck at a local travel agent and an apparent dearth of flights meant everyone was on the same flight to Hanoi, Vietnam and a date with the infamous Hanoi Hilton.

The preview that showed one team (Tom and Terry) getting upset at another team (Dustin and Kandice) was essentially a non-event, as was the one with another team (Duke and Lauren) running out of money. What was interesting is that the clue apparently said that teams were not allowed to beg or to sell anything. I'm curious what they are allowed to do - can they steal? Mug people? Does providing services count as selling, or only the sale of goods? We'll have to come back to that later in the race.

In any case, with all teams on the same flight, they arrive at the prison at roughly the same time - oh-dark-thirty - and they open in the morning. When the gates open, everyone runs around like crazy trying to find the flight suit of John McCain. Tom and Terry - does anyone else think Tom and Jerry when they say that? - were the first there, and they take half a second in apparent respect. Then every other team finds the room, and it appears that only brothers Erwin and Godwin pause for a moment of silence, even though it puts them momentarily into last place.

At this point, father-daughter team Duke and Lauren are in a pickle, as they are supposed to get to a flower shop that's a short distance away. But without any funds, they have to hoof it. They do make it there, but this puts them in a hole.

Meanwhile, everyone else gets to the market and finds the Roadblock, where one team member must sell 80,000 Vietnamese dong (about $5) worth. It's a relatively quick task once they find the flowers, and once complete, they get to keep the money, which they need to catch a bus to a village. The only problem is getting on the right bus. Peter and Sarah get on the wrong one, though they find out pretty quickly that they are on the wrong one and correct the problem. Erwin and Godwin, however, make a great move and take a commanding lead by getting on the first bus. Tom and Terry are on the second, and everyone except Peter and Sarah are on the third bus.

Once they arrive in Vac Village, Erwin and Godwin decline offers of riding on motorbikes because it was forbidden in the rules (for safety reasons). Thus, they walk a mile to get to the temple and the Detour. Here, they must choose between Fuel and Fowl.

In Fuel, the team presses 30 coal bricks, which are a common fuel source in Vietnam. They use wet coal from a communal pile and a sand-like substance. It works much like Play-Doh, but they have to get them the right size. In Fowl, the team travels to a nearby courtyard and uses traditional materials and methods to build birdcage.

Erwin and Godwin quickly choose Fuel and press their bricks, only to find that all of them are too small. They go back through and accomplish the task and claim first place, along with an entertainment center.

Tom and Terry also choose Fuel, do a better job of making their bricks, and step on the mat in second place, but when they do so, they are informed by Phil that because they rode motorbikes after getting off the bus, which is against the rules, they will have to wait out a 30-minute penalty. They step to the side and wait.

As they do, the other buses arrive. The teams quickly get lost in the maze of buildings, and everyone except Duke and Lauren chooses Fuel. The father and daughter choose Fowl because they can't seem to find the Fuel task. So they stumble upon the Fowl courtyard and start building their birdcage. While they do, the other teams build their bricks and get to the finish line.

• Erwin and Godwin
• Tyler and James
• Rob and Kimberly
• Dustin and Kandice
• Peter and Sarah
• Lyn and Karlyn
• David and Mary
• Tom and Terry
• Duke and Lauren

In the end, the birdcage seemed to do in Duke and Lauren, because they were the last to cross the finish line and they were on the bus with everyone else. We won't know how much time separated Tom and Terry and Duke and Lauren, but a lot of teams crossed the line in that thirty minutes, so Tom and Terry had to get nervous standing there.

Also, whoever is running the title department needs to get on the ball. Last week there was at least one mistake that showed a team (the fourth to depart, if memory serves) leaving roughly four hours before the first team. This week, another team in the middle of the pack was at one point listed as "Currently in 1st Place". Get with it!