Dalat, Vietnam!

We LOVE Dalat. 

It's kind of like if France and Vietnam had a baby and it was a town. 

At one point, about 20% of Dalat residents were French and the town retains a very European feel with many old colonial buildings.

We arrived late in the afternoon on September 5th and snagged this beautiful room at Phong Luu Guesthouse on Phan Boi Chau street for $15. It was the first time we had the foresight to book a room before arriving in a new city with no idea where to go. I think we are learning! 

Nighttime view from our lovely balcony...

Because we are so high in the mountains it's significantly cooler here and far less humid than Saigon. We had to shop for sweaters, scarves, and long pants. 

For lunch we found this amazing soup restaurant down the road from our hotel where we had a wonderful pho with a very flavorful, dark, anise and celery-filled broth and a delicious bowl of Bun Bo Hue, or "Hue-style soup" which is Lauren's new favorite. 

Then we rented a moto and poked around the Cremaillere Railway Station, a beautiful old art deco building in use from 1924 to 1964 when it was closed due to VietCong attacks. 

It's no longer connected to the main Vietnamese railway lines anymore but they do a 30 minute trip to a neighboring town twice per day in a very old train. We will try it tomorrow morning!

We got stuck in a rainstorm today so we pulled the moto over at a little restaurant and indulged in some remnants of French colonialism- bread, cheese, and wine! 

Also, Chris still doesn't know where the camera lens is on an iPhone.

There are beautiful gardens everywhere, VERY clean streets, people take care of their pets... 

it's heavenly.

We stopped into "Way to the Moon" Coffee House at 57 Phan Boi Chau Street and were pleasantly surprised by it's quirky, artsy ambience. 

The coffee house is a real treasure in a region where it seems like artistic self-expression is rarely witnessed in public. 

"...visitors feel as if they are in another world, a system of mystic caves with small winding paths, lianas, secular trees, rocks, and gates, all are made with concrete and cement but are harmoniously designed to create the single impression of a natural cave in the jungle." -- Xuan Quang, Saigon Times

The owner and architect, Lu Truc Phuong was wandering around while we were having coffee and introduced himself to us. 

SO COOL!!