"Go" can mean several things in Japanese. "Go" is the number "5" in the Japanese language. "Go" is also the name of a traditional board game ...
Today I learned to play "Go." It is a bit disconcerting because the board is divided into squares like a chess / checker board ... but instead of playing inside the squares, you place your pieces on the places where the lines cross. The object of the game is to control as many of those intersections as possible. The game was played by the samurai to teach strategy as well as to size up the strategy and personality of the other samurai.
The least experienced player uses the black stones and the more experienced player uses the white stones. At the end of the game, I had 56 corners and my opponent had 59 - so she won. She said that, according to how I played the game, she could tell I was a very calm and intelligent opponent. Of course, I was just sitting there calmly while she told me where to place the stones... which of course, shows great intelligence to act dumb and let her play my pieces...??? Apparently, there is going to be a big "GO" championship in Spain this summer....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsElvaoWcyw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyllVL9fpe0&feature=related
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