Dalat...The Gatlinburg of Vietnam

Yesterday we enjoyed the longest bus ride yet, about 8 hours from ho chi min city to Dalat. When we arrived we I was immediately questioning our guides about the frequency of marriage chapels, but to no avail. My suspicions were wrong, Dalat is not the Gatlinburg of Vietnam- Da lat is it's less expensive, once french colonized, Asian little sister.

The first thing that strikes you when you arrive at Dalat is the drive itself-- it is very steep climb up mountains, on very narrow roads, on a VERY large bus. It's hard not to wince when playing a game of chicken with a semi-truck on a cliff 3000 feet above the next road, however I have found the driver does not appreciate my anticipation of the wreck.

We arrived at the hotel and it is by far the nicest one we have stayed at since being in Vietnam, large full sized beds, nice linens, and a quality bar which has nightly performances of such hits as "They call it puppy love" in Vietnamese. A quick meal of Vietnam Pizza, then we followed that with a trip to the night market.

One of the coolest things about Vietnam are the night markets. They are loud, bright, completely foreign and bubbling over with local activity. You can buy anything, eat anything, and see almost anything at the night markets. Rows of booths are set up for mile, each booth containing things specific to Vietnam. My purchases last night consisted of some vietnamese river snails cooked in chili's and butter, and my new fancy shoes (which I have already broken) which are left over COACH brand material with the words "Tommy Hilfiger branded on leather straps.

We went to a Cafe and enjoyed some traditional ice creams and drinks. Feeling adventurous I decided on durian flavored ice cream...that was a mistake. That actually may be an understatement, durian ice cream could be used as a form of torture. It's rough.. I'll leave it there.

Today we visited a Flower Garden, a Japanese style pagota and rode in a glass tram over the mountains. It was amazing. I was feeling a little under the weather today, my stomach had a bad reaction to something I had eaten. Luckily everything I did that morning, was breath takingly beautiful and I felt very fufilled. After lunch I asked if I could stay at the hotel and recoup a bit while the others went on to an embroidery museum and climbed a mountain (I was super pumped about the mountain climb, I even brought my inhaler.) before they could get to the mountain there was a quick but heavy rain storm that made the conditions too muddy and slick to conquest the mountain. They returned with a gift from the museum for me and tales of rebellious photo taking in leu of "No Picture" postings. I was thrilled I didn't miss the mountain but more touched by the James Dean like attitude of my travel buddies to ensure I could still see the museum.

All in all it was an amazing day just like every other day has been. It's hard not to fall, madly, deeply, and hopelessly in love with Vietnam. The sights, the people, and the overall attitude of the country is contagious and in the best ways. You smile a little wider, laugh a little harder, and any worries seem a little less important. Like begining any new relationship everything is just too smooth and too wonderful. If Vietnam is the new love of my life, I am definitely still in the honey moon stage.


Tam Biet,

Andrea