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Published: November 1st 2008
Restaurant De Poste
Delicious food just across the road from our hotelThat leads to Dalat!!!!!!
We flew from Danang to Nha Trang. Sitting waiting for our flight, listening to the delayed flight announcements, I sat with baited breath waiting for the flight number to be called. I had been told that flights from Danang - Nha Trang are notorious for being delayed/cancelled. Fortunately, our flight was not one of these.
Across the aisle from me on the flight was an American guy and his friend was sitting a few seats away. As we were coming in to land he became quite emotional. There was a large naval base here during the war. This fellow and his friend were stationed here for a year (I think they were doctors). This was their first return. I felt emotional myself witnessing this. You could see all their memories come rushing back.
Anyway our driver was waiting for us to take us on the 4hr drive up to Dalat. It all started out so easily - with interesting landscapes quite different from elsewhere rising very slowly. Then, as it became darker, the road became steeper, windier, narrower!!!!!!! I could see lights way below. and the lights on the hydro pipeline way above - almost vertical. Thank
Eiffel Tower???
No but it sure looks like it - Dalat was a French hill station!! goodness it had become dark!!!!! Thank goodness we had such a great driver!!! Just when you think you had made it to the top and that this little town was Dalat, we would drive through, onwards and upwards, until we finally reached Dalat.
The town was bigger than we thought. Very nice accomodation at the Novotel Dalat, opposite the post office, the Cafe de Poste (where we ate dinner - Vietnamese staff dressed as French waitresses, weird).
Dalat is an amazing mix. Originally a hillstation for the French to escape the oppressive tropical heat of Saigon, it's now principally the centre for growing of temperate climate fruits, vegetables and flowers for Vietnam. Strange to think of things like strawberries growing in Vietnam! This is where they make the Vietnamese Dalat wines - don't care what anyone else thinks - I still like the Dalat red - drinkable at least!
Yep, some crazies live here in Dalat - you have to check out the 'Crazy House' and the 'Eccentric Monk' - maybe it's the altitude - 1475m- that gathers all these eccentricities in one place!
So, it's time to head to the airport and our flight to HCMC - much quicker
Train to nowhere
Remnants of the line from Saigon to Dalat - you can ride this for a very short journey. than driving. Well, it would have been if the flight wasn't cancelled. No worries, Vn airlines provided a delicious (?) meal at a local restaurant - didn't recognize a thing but we managed to have enough to eat and meanwhile find out why bitter gourds are so named!!!
Luckily, our driver had not left and offered - for an extra fee of course - to take us to visit some waterfalls while waiting for our flight. Which ones you ask - so do I? Never mind it sure beat sitting at the Dalat airport for hours!!
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cosmo1122
cosmo
thanks veejay
You were so instrumental in me going to Vietnam and I appreciated all your advice and ideas. Will send you my email privately. I LOVED VN and am even now thinking of going back to the places I missed, 2 weeks just wasn't enough time especially with the bad weather.