Da Lat: 3 waterfalls, 4 days, 5 wives

So, we’d left sunny Mui Ne behind and took a 5 hour bus in the rain to Da Lat. It was so bumpy that I spent the entire journey trying not to throw up-despite not having travel sickness- and the ceiling spent 5 hours leaking on me. When we finally got off into the pouring rain of Da Lat I found that my bag had also been royally peed on throughout the entire journey and was now soaking wet. What a joy that journey was.

Da Lat then spent the next 24 hours absolutely hammering it down, causing us to wear actual leggings and a hoody for the first time in over 3 months. It also gave rise to some very fashionable ponchos, though Vogue has not yet got back to us. However, when the sun did finally decide to show its face on our second day it was ABsolutely glorious.

There’s tonnes to do in this beautiful green city, so on one of the days we combined a chunk of activities into one day with our guide Mr Loi and Oh My Word he was entertainment in himself. His wisdom included telling Ryan (who’s from the North of England): “You far from London, you a potato” and then when talking about English politics saying: “You have new prime minster? Boris Johnson, he look like a baby ahaha. Crazy.” Also, he has 5 wives. But loves them equally. So that’s ok right? Anyway, I digress. Here’s what we got up to...

Pagodas:

Linh Phuoc- The walls, ceilings and pillars are covered in beautiful mosaic creatures made from thousands of pieces of broken porcelain, terracotta and glass. Honestly, the whole place is covered, it’s really impressive and a style we’ve not seen across Thailand, Laos or Cambodia. It also has a huge bell tower where donging (that’s probably not the technical term) the bell 3 times sends your prayers up to Buddha. Beside that is an 18m Bodhisattva made from over 600,000 flowers. Apparently they have to be replaced every 2 years- how high maintenance can one Bodhisattva be?!

Truc Lam- plonked on a hilltop with beautiful gardens and the freshest air. It’s still an active monastery so you can catch a glimpse of monks pottering around and hear their chanting.

Linh An- the highlight of this pagoda for us was the fairly recent (built in 2017) giant 54m high bodhisattva. You can even climb the 256 stairs inside to about her shoulder level to look out across dreamy green Da Lat. It’s also right next to Elephant Falls so these 2 a a good combo if you’re out that way.

Linh Son- a little piece of calm in the city, this pagoda is on a hill and has a small garden with a similar vibe to Linh Phuoc’s mosaic pillars.

Waterfalls:

Da Lat has done well with its waterfalls- 3 pretty banging ones all within an hour of the city. All that rain it has probably helps...

Pongour- this waterfall is the furthest from Da Lat but worth the trek as it’s the most impressive of the 3. Because of its distance from the city they are barely any people there, which is ace. The falls are made from a series of MASSIVE natural rocky ledges which the water cascades down- it’s pretty impressive.

Elephant- when you arrive you’re at the top of the waterfall. To get to the bottom you need to descend a steep slippery set of rocks with the help of a hand rail. You can get to 3 points this way- the bottom to watch the water deafeningly cascade down into the stream, the middle where bright rainbows are formed like magic (or science if you’re being boring) from by the mist from the falls and the sun, and into a cave under the falls which is a cool, if a rather soggy experience (understatement, you’ll get soaked).

Datanla- this is the smallest of the 3 falls, but the waterfall isn’t really the prime attraction here- it’s the hilarious alpine coaster that gets you down to the falls and back up again. You bundle into a little kart on tracks and control your own speed and braking down to the bottom, zipping through the trees to the smell of pines and the sound of woops from your fellow coaster-riders. The most bizarre route to a waterfall I’ve ever taken.

Crazy architecture:

Crazy house- designed and built by the Vietnamese architect Đặng Việt Nga (the daughter of Ho Chi Minh’s successor), Crazy House resembles a series of giant tree trunks. You can explore the Crazy House, using the various winding staircases to walk over the roofs and down into the ocean inspired cave. You can also stay here in the various animal themed rooms if that’s your thing.

100 roofs bar- designed by a student of Đặng Việt Nga (who designed the Crazy House) this place is a labyrinth spanning several floors. We came here when it was raining, grabbed a cuppa at the door and then carted it round whilst attempting to find our way through the maze. Most bizarre tea drinking experience I’ve had yet.

Chicken village- This village is so named because of the giant 15m concrete chicken sat at its entrance. The story goes that traditionally couples had arranged marriages in this village and that for the marriage a dowry of a large chicken was to be paid. Two star crossed lovers wanted to choose their own partner but their parents asked for a large chicken which they didn’t have. They went into the jungle to search for a wild chicken and were never seen again. The village realised the error of their ways and built the chicken as a symbolic dowry so that everyone was able to marry the one they loved. The chicken is the main attraction here, not one to go out of your way for, but cool to see if you’re passing- it’s not everyday you get to see a giant chicken after all.

Farms and produce:

What a thrilling title! We saw each of these as part of a bigger tour, like the chicken village they’re cool to get an insight into if you’re passing.

Mushroom farm- our guide pulled up a tarpaulin and there were hundreds of bags filled with soil with large mushrooms growing out of the ends. When they’re harvested they’re then left to dry in the sun ready to sell.

Coffee plantation- we saw the coffee growing and then got to choose from a variety of teas and coffees and drink them whilst sat in the sunshine (drying out from elephant falls) looking out over the coffee plantation.

Silk factory- we saw the whole process from the egg laying, the munching silk worms, the silk cocoons, to the silk weaving on ancient machines. The craft itself is pretty cool, but I’m not a fan of the poor silk worms being put into hot water whilst they’re in their cocoons so that their silk can be used.

Ho Xuan Huong lake:

In the centre of Da Lat sits this lovely lake. You can walk the whole way round, which is lovely in the sunshine and there’s several cafes to stop at along the way. You can also hire a swan pedalo and slowly bob round the lake. Try not to do it in the middle of a storm like we did...

Sleep: Little Ant Home- This place is run by the loveliest little family. They’re friendly and helpful- booking a tour, motorbikes and our sleeper bus for us. It’s perfectly located tucked in a quiet little road in the city and is walkable to the lake and night market. Free breakfast was included with our room too.

Eat: Brew and Breakfast- this place is vegan so we could eat EVERYTHING on the menu and it tastes amazing. Plus they have the cutest cats and dogs.

Sky over Da Lat- a little bit pricey for Vietnam but it’s all vegetarian and super tasty.

Night market- this place is cheap street food central. We had a vegetarian hot pot street-side here and it served 2 purposes- feeding us AND keeping us warm.

An Cafe- tasty food in the city, and you sit on swings.

Drink: Heyla- this place has a happy hour and games on their second floor. Plus, live music every night at 9.

100 Roofs bar- you order your drink virtually in the doorway and then spend the rest of your time walking around the maze which spans several floors with quirky themes with your drink in hand.

Thanks for being our sunshine and our showers Da Lat, next stop: Hoi An