Dalat, Day 2 - done already??

Thankfully, not quite done. We managed to fit a lot in to the 1/2 day before checking out of the hotel.  :)

From the Crazy House, we headed to the Linh Son Pagoda.

We met a monk and had quite the conversation with him. He was describing the construction work going on... they are trying to bring nature closer to the Pagoda - the mountains and water will be replicated in this new part. He also spoke of Vietnam and when "the boat people" left Vietnam for America... their leaving helped Vietnam as a country. He sees Vietnam today as not communist but capitalist. He was really interesting to speak to - he's lived in this pagoda since he was 10 years old.

Then the girls wanted to visit the Dalat Flower Gardens. I took this chance for a quiet moment next to the lake with my book...

Cute :)

Dalat's Eiffel Tower

Our next stop... the Dalat Market. We took a horse-drawn carriage ride to get there!

Donna and myself.

The Market was great - so many fruits and vegetables that we've never seen before.

We enjoyed sampling from this girl... I bought a half kilo of two different things... the bright green things in the bowl to the left (of the 4 in front)... and the orange ones on the right (they are dried sweet potato)...

Then we relaxed with lattes and juice at a cafe... and shopped around a bit more. 

Donna and Kathleen

The cafe overlooked the square with the market, which is the big building on the left...

We were all hoping to find someone selling silk paintings - an art form that was created in Dalat... but we never did find a shop or stall. One foreigner said that we must have very bad luck - he was basically searched out and followed by ladies trying to sell him silk paintings! We read in the guidebook that we'd see silk paintings for sale all over the place... haha... no such luck.

An Easy Rider xe om driver (a group of English-speaking xe om drivers that give city tours in Dalat) pulled up next to me on the sidewalk... I asked him where I could buy a silk painting and he said in the countryside. I had one hour before needing to be back to the hotel to checkout, so I jumped on his bike and we took off! It was great to be on a motorbike and drive through the mountain hills with the cool breeze... you see so much more on the back of a bike than in a taxi.

We arrived at a beautiful building with many shops, water fountains, and... a silk painting factory! It was very cool to see how these beautiful paintings are made.

The detailing is amazing. BUT none of these paintings struck me as one I wanted to have... and they were quite expensive. I knew that I could get them back in HCMC at the Binh Thanh Market... so I left empty-handed but very happy about the little ride we took.

This xe om driver was wonderful - he said to me at one point on the drive up... "I am good driver, no? Some drivers crazy." ...And he won me over as soon as he said his name is Buddha! Here's a picture of me with my new buddy:

After leaving the shop with the silk paintings we passed a nice bakery. I asked Buddha what some cakes were made of and he kept saying some ingredient - but I have no idea what it was. I asked him if it's good... if he likes it... and he said that he's never tried it before.

So I bought two of these little cakes... and gave one to Buddha. We walked back towards his bike happily munching on our cakes and I asked if he liked it - he said yes... that anything tastes good when your belly is hungry. He said that he was a student during the war and his belly was always hungry. He told me all of this as if it were no big deal but it struck my heart. It is the first mention of the war that I've heard here.

Moving on... I got back to the hotel, said goodbye to Buddha, packed my things and we checked out of the hotel. Kathleen, Donna, and I went to a nice restaurant for lunch - Le Cafe de la Poste. It was very nice to treat ourselves and take our time... even ordering dessert and cappuccino after.  :)

Le Cafe de la Poste

We even had time to take a little walk...

This is the view from someone's back balcony! Donna and I walked down the little alley with the cat (above) and I wanted to get a picture of the view. The family was home and super excited that foreigners wanted to go into their yard and take a picture! I don't think they're used to Western foreigners walking into their backyard! Everyone here is so friendly... I feel really lucky that the Vietnamese tend to view Americans in such a positive light.

 

Dalat's Eiffel Tower

We then called for a taxi and went off to the airport. By this time, the cold that I was attempting to fight all weekend had definitely settled in. My head felt heavy, I kept sneezing... I was that girl that no one wants to sit next to the on the plane! Phuong (library assistant) has been sick for the past week and we're in such close quarters behind our library desk that I knew I'd probably end up with it. The flight back to HCMC was only 40 minutes from take off to landing and upon reaching my apartment, I crashed for the night.

'Twas a wonderful weekend getaway! My head is still a bit in the clouds, my nose is stuffed, and my ears are plugged... but morning tea helps immensely and I'm glad I was able to enjoy my trip!

Flying back, I was thinking to myself, "Time to  head home..." but the home part still doesn't feel quite right. This is an amazing adventure so far and I do feel pretty comfortable with the idea of living here for the next two years -- I can make it work... but HCMC is not an ideal location for me as a permanent place. The heat, humidity, pollution and heaviness to the air, traffic, etc. is not something I would be happy with over time. If I continue teaching abroad after this contract is up, I will need to look more into finding somewhere that is a better match for myself. I do love what a great location this is as a jumping off point to travel elsewhere and will be taking advantage of that!

Our plane back to HCMC: