Dalat: Food

While our time in Da Lat was relatively short, we managed to cram in as many meals as humanly possible.  Bowing to the God of Brevity, here's a small smattering of food-related photographs and blurbs.

I was extremely impressed with the amount of Vegetarian restaurants around the town.  My favorite was a Banh Mi Chay (vegetarian baguette) stand I found attached to the aptly-titled Hoa Sen (Lotus Flower) at 62 Phan Dinh Phung.

Their distinctive Banh Mi's were magical.  They came complete with a spicy tofu 'pate' spread, soy-based imitation meats perfectly resembling the regular mystery products in both taste and texture, and the usual suspects (stalks of coriander, translucent daikon radish strips, carrots, and cucumber slices).  It was the first time in six months that I have actually been pleasantly full after a street sandwich.

Gavin's quick and dirty highlight was a Chinese-style Wonton Soup spot called Khu Hung he found on the same block at 129 Phan Dinh Phung.

The soup was meaty and flavorful with delicate nebular dumplings floating in an inviting broth.  Paper-thin slices of barbecued pork and stalks of greenery joined in the revelry. Truly difficult to not break a sweat after throwing in liberal quantities of hot chili paste and washing it all down with hot green tea.

On our first afternoon in town, we enjoyed two slices of fresh, piping-hot carrot cake at expat-owned and operated V Cafe (1/1 Bu Thi Xuan).  I paired my cake with a few glasses of Da Lat wine, while Gavin stuck to La Rue beer.  We enjoyed the friendly atmosphere so much that afternoon that we returned to V Cafe later that night for more drinks and live music.

Bo La Lot (tender, rare beef wrapped in wild betel leaf) was a definite highlight of our dinner at local favorite Long Hoa (3 Thang 2 quite near the central market).  While Gavin attacked his current favorite finger-food, I stuck with my simple stand-by in Vietnam - stir fried veggies and fried garlic rice.  White linens, a fanciful bar, and dirty French cartoons adorning the hallways made this place feel distinctly Occidental, but all of our dishes were prepared well and the staff was friendly and informed.

We also enjoyed a couple of great meals at family-owned Da Quy (Wild Sunflower) on 49 Truong Cong Dinh.  Fresh vegetarian spring rolls stuffed with fried tofu and veggies, something I make often at home but have never actually seen on a menu, whetted my appetite on both occasions.  Their stir-fried vegetables with tofu and Chinese-style sweet & sour catfish were excellent as well.

A complete list of Da Lat restaurants we recommend can be found in The Directory.

Dalat: Out and About

With two days to spend frolicking through the town before we began our motorbike adventure north, we covered a large portion of the worthwhile sights.  Here are some of the highlights:

Linh Son Pagoda.  Lovely hilltop temple with outstanding views of the town located just off of Nguyen Van Troi Street.

A troop of hormonal teens perched on the front steps did their best to intimidate, yet nothing could stop our breathless march on this sun-drenched afternoon. Behold the ornate majesty of the multicolor, mosaic dragons adorning the gates.

The Market.  I love a good market and I think Cho Da Lat, an imposingly drab structure in the center of town, was one of the best I have visited to date.

Heaps of dried fruits from the Central Highlands, fresh veggies that thrive in the temperate climate, rice wine, strange beasts of the Earth, reams of cloth and house wares... they truly had it all in this multi-story complex.

My favorite part of our market adventure was encountering old friends: all the vegetables available in Da Lat that are harder to find in balmy Saigon such as avocados, artichokes, berries, and the various members of the squash family.

The Da Lat Flower Park and Lake Xuan Huong.  We had intended to complete the 7km trek around Da Lat's famously tepid Xuan Huong lake. After plodding along for about 3 km and experiencing a forgettable hike around the bizarro Disney-themed Flower Park, ominous clouds began choking the sky and we wisely jumped in a taxi to continue onwards.

A highlight of our walk around the lake was a stop at Thah Thuy Blue Water Restaurant for a lakeside sinh to bo (avocado smoothie) and cay da (iced tea).  We also completed our first tag-team crossword while enjoying the beverages! Thanks to whatever kind soul left the barely touched book of LA Times crosswords at our hotel.

Emperor Bao Dai's Summer Palace.  Due to the torrential downpour we didn't take many pictures, but the 1930's art-deco inspired palace once housed the last Emperor of Vietnam and his family before they relocated to France.  I love visiting homes and found this one to be particularly awe-inspiring, strange, and melancholy at the same time. (Note one of the original personal saunas in the pictures below.)

The Crazy House.  A surrealist architectural project gone out of control.  It is part theme park, part hotel and is still being added to as we speak.  The gal who designed it is the daughter of a past vice president and clearly has the brains, creativity, and resources to make such an individually eccentric artistic vision come to life.

The Cathedral.  Although it was highlighted in the Lonely Planet (probably due to the lack of spectacular things to do here), a picture of this towering modernist blight was enough.  Apparently, Da Lat has a sizable Catholic population, many of which were refugees from the North.

The Eiffel Tower.  Are we in Paris or Da Lat?  One can't tell with this tower constantly looming over the city!

Children Burning Trash.  No city tour is complete without at least a few pictures of people doing weird things.