Dalat (Da Lat)

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After the adventure to get there, the serenity of Dalat was very welcoming.

Dalat is a town in the mountainous regions of South Central Vietnam, set amongst some of the most picturesque scenery and dotted with art deco buildings, and buildings of European style. The town features a miniature version of the Eiffel Tower, illustrating its strong French colonial roots. Although slowly opening up to tourism, Dalat is still on relatively few foreigners’ tourist trails – in fact, we saw hardly any other western travellers. It appears to cater for wealthy Vietnamese on weekend getaways.

Having had a relaxing night the previous evening, unwinding in a couple of bars and enjoying some local food, we made an early start to explore the town. As most of the places we wanted to visit were fairly central we decided to do this on foot, which was the perfect way to take in our glorious surroundings. At 1,500 metres above sea level, the temperatures are lower – although they still hit the late twenties. Waking around was a welcome relief from the hotter temperatures we’d experienced elsewhere, although the cooler temperatures combined with the mountainous terrain introduced us to a whole new range of large insects (or small animals)! We took a scenic route round the lake which is on the side of the town up to the old cathedral – one of the oldest churches in Vietnam. From there we headed up to one of the most bizarre buildings that we had come across, the aptly named Crazy House, a truly unique piece of architecture that meanders in and around itself.

Whilst noticeable across the country, the divide between rich and poor was more prominent in Dalat. Communities of very basic huts with corrugated iron roofs were situated next to grand old buildings of European style.


No matter what the level of prosperity though, everyone we passed seemed pleased to see us, coming over to say hello or waving amusedly at the reddish tinted tourists.

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