Dalat

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We headed to Dalat, deep in the mountains for a bit of refreshing cold. Below Hoi An, everywhere is so god-damn warm; it's evidently hot season and it can get very uncomfortable!

Dalat is a place that came highly recommended but in the end I think we were disappointed with it. We were there for 2 nights and we actually planned to stay longer, but decided against it whilst we were here. The first day there was spent wandering around the old city and the old classical buildings are very hard to find on a walking tour. In truth, it seemed a bit shabby. So we waited around until the next day, our only full day here, and we saw some impressive sights, such as the old convent for nuns which is marvellously set high on a hill. The exterior is bright pink, and so were our faces: we'd hired a tandem and it was a bit of a hike getting it up those hills! It was a bit tortuous in the early morning heat. Unfortunatley this is the best time to get things done here as in rainy season it hoys it down for the afternoon.

We then visited the highlight of our trip, the crazy house. I've said it before but pictures can only describe this place - it's a place straight out of a Tim Burton film, with weird settings and awesome structures. I can't even begin to describe it - think of gothic treehouses, etc etc. The best thing about this place is the ability to sleep here, although you share a room with a number of frightening creatures....

We cycled around the lake after this, viewing the old cathedral and also the Eiffel Tower shaped pylon - a clear example of the French influence!

In the end, this was a trip that was slighly disappointing, but Dalat is famed for the sights outside of the city such as the waterfalls which we didn't see. But it's also famed for its lush setting, and bohemian Europeanesque feel and we didn't get that at all. I think we were spoiled with Sapa to be fair. So, in the end, we headed on down on our marathon trip to Saigon.

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