Our driver today did an outstanding job. I am even prepared to forgive his stop / start technique because he was so good. So grateful that we arrived in one piece at our resort on the outskirts of Dalat, I used Google Translate to say “well done”, and “thank you”, and “that was such a hard drive”. When I proudly showed him the screen shot of the translation, I was surprised when he looked confused. Rita, our guide, explained patiently to me that I was talking about the hard drive on the computer. OK, move on!
The outskirts of Mũi Né were quite pretty with the coastline on our right as we headed due north. Cows happily roamed along the main road and along the beach. Some were being guarded by a ‘drover’ (?), but others seemed to be totally unsupervised.
Our drive took us through amazing scenery; past plantations of dragon fruit initially, then banana plantations, then Australian eucalypt plantations and finally rows and rows of coffee plantations. Mick has been to Papua New Guinea four times and seen lots of coffee plantations, but he had never seen coffee bushes so heavily ladened with fruit / beans.
I knew the road was going to be windy, but this was a windy road on ‘steroids’.
To make the drive even more challenging, the skinny road we travelled on for the first 3+ hours , which climbed up higher and higher, was riddled with pot holes; massive pot holes. So what with dodging the pot holes, the oncoming traffic, the cattle, and the locals, you can perhaps understand why I was impressed by the driver’s efforts.
This part of Vietnam is perfect for hydroelectricity and we did see the infrastructure for this, including dams, water pipes, transformer station and large overhead lines.
As we navigated these windy roads we passed some interesting sights.
After two and a half hours, our driver found us a road stop, with an amazing view.
Before we left, I asked where the WC was and followed directions down the hill to a block of 4 cubicles. Once I saw inside, I was very grateful that I practice yoga, including the Malasana or Garland pose, for some part of each day. 😉
We have seen many of these roadside stops where customers are provided with not only a shady place to consume their purchases, and access to the WC of course at no charge, hammocks are also provided for a comfy rest.
The last third of our journey was through very rural villages, and the roads were slightly better. Driving conditions greatly improved in the last 30 minutes when we joined a motorway, complete with tolls. The maximum speed on this road was 90km/hour. There was a massive sign at the start of the motorway listing all the things (vehicles and animals) that were not allowed on it, including motor bikes. While we did see one person who clearly did not see the sign, not having bikes and scooters on the road made it feel so much safer, and of course quicker. Reminded me a little of home.
Rita had booked us a 3 room villa at Terracotta Hotel & Resort, located on the outskirts of Dalat in what looks like a National Park. It’s beautiful. The three rooms are located over 2 levels, each with its on own ensuite. Plus there is a massive common area. I’m sure we will be very comfortable here, so long as we don’t get lost on the grounds.
We will stay here for two nights.
During the late afternoon, all five of us ventured into the centre of Dalat for a look around and to find a place for a drink and some dinner. But those experiences deserve a separate post.
However I do want to tell you about the local wine.
Some of you know that Mick and I like to visit wineries during our travels; the last few holidays I’ve planned for us have been based around wine tasting and of course, drinking a glass or two. It is our hobby!!
We discovered today that Dalat is a region in Vietnam that makes wine; apparently, influenced by the French. But we have tasted loads of French wines, and the French if they hadn’t already fled this country, would have once they tasted this. It was woeful. Thankfully it only cost 100,000 VND (<$7 AUD).
Some notes from the bottle “….fermented from Cardinal grapes and mulberry fruits, and natrimetabisulphit (sic), acid sorbic. Serve around 18C and keep in cool place out of sunlight. Extremely solf (sic) taste!”
“Solf” was not the descriptor Mick used!!
To me it tasted like a mix between balsamic vinegar and sweetened strawberry juice.
It won the medal for the “Worst Wine Mick Has Tasted”.
PS – If you are wondering why we are drinking wine from water glasses in a very, very fancy resort, the answer is that this resort charges for EVERYTHING.
There is a list of things you can rent here – including glasses, plates and cutlery. PLUS, a list of the charges for anything you might like to take with you when you leave (i.e. steal). The list includes the price for the TV, bed, and sofa down to the telephone handset in the bathroom. Mick sat on one chair in our room and noticed that the wooden supporting plywood (?) piece was split. He won’t sit on it again, and I am hoping we don’t get charged the 5,000,000 VND for a replacement!!
Tomorrow we head back to Dalat to explore the city further on our own, while the youngsters go canyoning.
Jane and Mick's Holiday Adventures 