We arrived in Da Lat around 7pm, which was just enough time to check into our hotel room then hit the street for some food. On our food escapades we came across a woman making some mystery food on the side of the road that we couldn’t quite identify. But there were a ton of Vietnamese kids our age who were eating there and having a blast so we figured, we should do as the locals do.

Our chef concocting the mystery dish:So we sat down, the lady gestured to us by holding up one finger and asking “1?” to which we replied yes. She then proceeded to create one of the most odd foods we have seen. First, she threw a thin crepe/filo dough type thing on the grill. Then cracked/whisked an egg onto it. Then opened a laughing cow cheese triangle and smeared it in the center. Then added various shredded meats from different containers. Then a strange little hot dog thing (that we ended up picking out and throwing in the trash because let’s be real, we’re adventurous, but we have our limits). Then she rolled it all up like a burrito and handed to us. Honestly, it wasn’t bad (at first) but it was so strange and oddly rich that we struggled to finish it. We were proud that we tried it though!

The best part might have been the fact that it was wrapped in papers that were most likely found in a recycling bin. Reduce, reuse, recycle right?Now for some overview of the area. The town of Da Lat is known as “Le Petite Paris” which means little Paris. This is largely due to the French occupation of the area through the 1950s. From the bakeries to the architecture, there are small glimmers of French culture dotted around the city. It was a different vibe than in Ho Chi Min mainly because it was (slightly) less chaotic while walking around and because it actually did have a small hint of a French city.

Are we in Paris or Vietnam? One thing we’ve learned is that traffic in Vietnam is absolutely insane. Not that there are traffic jams, but the nature of driving is just… chaos. There are hundreds of scooters everywhere you turn, weaving in and out of buses, taxis, and cars. There are hardly any stop signs, so vehicles just honk their horns when going through intersections to alert that they are coming. Pedestrians also do not have any right of way whatsoever. There are cross walks but no lit up walk signs. Cars also do not stop for you, which means that in order to cross the street, you literally just have to walk out, try to avoid the cars, and just pray the scooters maneuver around you. It’s a skill we continue to work on but so far so good. That being said, we decided that if you can’t beat em, join em! So we rented a scooter and hit the road. We took an hour ride up into the countryside to a place called the Elephant Waterfall (which didn’t seem to have much to do with elephants and was actually quite dirty with a ton of garbage floating in it, so we didn’t stay more than 15 minutes).

It definitely wasn’t awful, but our expectations were a little too high. Here’s a photo of it’s good side though!We then stopped at a massive coffee plantation for an afternoon iced Vietnamese coffee which was delicious. The view also did not disappoint.

Those sweet, sweet Vietnamese beans:Views of the coffee plantation:Tristan thinks he looks like a goober in this photo (Taylor agrees but posts it anyway):When we got back to town around 5pm and were in the process of cruising around the city, when we spotted a delightful, touristy activity that we just couldn’t pass up… swan boats! So we paid a couple bucks, hopped in, and paddled around the lake in the center of the city.

Feeling very touristy and not upset about it:Swan boat views:It was actually quite serene and peaceful (except for the HUGE dead fish we paddled by, but we’ll ignore that). At one point, we were paddling next two older Vietnamese men. As Taylor looked over, she made eye contact with one and there was somehow a non-verbal agreement that we were going to race them. So we knodded, then put the pedal to the metal… and…we got left in the DUST (moderately embarrassing, but a fun memory nonetheless).

A tragic loss for team New England to team Vietnam:After burning a whole 30 calories from paddling, we decided it was time to go eat more food then call it a night. Although we only spent two nights and one full day in Da Lat, it was a great stop and it was nice to get out into the countryside on the scooter. The next day, we took a bus up to Nha Trang, a beach town about 3 hours north. More to come on that later!

With love from Vietnam,

T&T