Saigon, Nha Trang, Dalat and back again.

Expectations and reality. What can I say about this trip? Well sometimes things don't turn out how you expect, and that can be fantastic...

I suppose the easiest way to tell this story is from the beginning.

It was the 13th of November, week 4 in the RMIT academic calendar and amongst a group of us international students there was a feeling stirring. Feet were itching and Lonely planet guides to Vietnam were being thumbed through, it was time for a weekend trip once again.

The initial group numbered 5, consisting of 3 Germans and 2 Australians but soon swelled to 7. Another Australian had arrived in Saigon and despite having arrived only the night before he was so impressed by our plan that he couldn't resist joining and invited another Australian too. And what a plan it was.

The Plan

Given that we only had about 4 days or less free each week we were looking to nearby towns and cities for our trip. Two stood out to us, The Vietnamese 'city of love' Dalat and the beach side city of Nha Trang.

Not only was it cheaper to fly to Nha Trang but by chance the two cities were linked by "one of south Vietnam's most scenic roads" (Nomadasauras 2015), We couldn't believe our luck as we read accounts of the peaceful, mountainous and pothole-free roads. And so we decided we would book our flights to and from Nha Trang, giving us the chance to relax in the waves at the beach and from there hire some scooters, ride to Dalat, spend a few days enjoying the cool climate and waterfalls before riding back to Nha Trang and flying home. Sounds like the perfect trip, So we booked our flights two weeks in advance for 900000D ($53 AUD) return with VietJet. What could go wrong in two weeks?

ah...shit.

Understandably, some (weaker) members of the group were less than enthusiastic about flying into a disaster zone. And our group dwindled to four hardcore individuals.

Maybe it was because Dalat seemed like a haven from the storm, maybe because we had a window of clear weather before the storm hit or maybe we'd spent $53 AUD on non refundable tickets, no one really knew why but the remaining four of us remained committed to the trip.

And so on Thursday evening we met at university and made our way to the airport for our 7:15 flight to Cam Ran airport, Nha Trang.

Three travellers and their Cary(-on baggage)

We didn't know what to expect when we arrived in Cam Ran, at the risk of sounding cliche it was quiet, too quiet.

There was definitely a noticeable queue of people for the next flight out of Cam Ran but we didn't let that worry us.

Outside the taxi drivers were desperate for fares. So desperate in fact that our 500000 VND taxi ride to Nha Trang cost us only 250000 VND. The ride was definitely eerie. It was only 9:00 and the roads were empty. The weather was very calm, storm debris had been largely cleaned up but it couldn't hide the concrete road barriers which had been totaled by falling boulders, a slightly worrying sign. Speaking of worrying signs, when we pulled up to our hostel we were greeted with a no vacancy sign so that was a bit worrying indeed. A quick search of Agoda identified another hostel across town for $5 a night so we set off to find it.

Along the way we stopped by a delicious street food stall for dinner and feasted on a vast array of skewers, before washing it down with arguably the best fruit smoothies in the whole of Vietnam.

From there we made our way to the foreshore. Nha Trang's long foreshore reminded me a lot of Cairns in Tropical north Queensland but it definitely had a Miami Vice feel to it. We had heard rumors of the city's links to Russian and Chinese gangs and you could kind of feel it. Despite the city feeling almost deserted, the beachfront nightclubs were still bumping, Tatted up blokes stared us down as we passed the tuned motorcycles and luxury sports cars parked outside. Three times we were offered drugs by dealers scooting around on two wheels. In short it seemed like Schoolies would be a real hit here.

The hostel was nice enough for $5 a night, we ate breakfast for $2 on the rooftop and watched the rain pour in. When we caught a break in the weather we made our way to the beach. It was quite an interesting sight, The beach was packed with Russians, all dressed ready for their summer holidays on a cold grey day, they just kind of sat there looking disappointed. Well except for this lad, who was clearly so enraged that he decided to fight mother nature herself.

Despite a promising break in the weather, our plan to ride to Da lat was suspended for fear of landslides on the mountain pass and so we booked into a tiny shuttle bus and began the 5 hour trip into the mountains. It was a truly spectacular drive and annoyingly it did not rain the whole time and the pass was completely clear of any rock slides, meaning we could have rode the bikes. isn't hindsight wonderful?

Along the way we received news that the eye of the incoming tropical storm which threatened to turn Nha Trang into liquid had actually diverted and was heading further south to Ho Chi Minh City. We shared a moment of pure joy as we imagined our friends perishing in the tropical storm they had gone out of their way to avoid.

Well not exactly, but it was pretty amusing.

We then arrived in Dalat. I'd read mixed reviews about it. Historically, DaLat was used as a hillside getaway for French officials during colonial times. It's climate is distinctly European (cold) and it's main industries include the production of dairy, flowers and really expensive coffee. Sounds lovely? Well that's what everyone in Vietnam thought too, so for the last 40 years Dalat has been the place for a romantic couples retreat. Unfortunately this has seen Dalat lose some of it's charm to unchecked development. In fact a review by rough guide had this to say.

"..the place is “a drab little resort”, and today its colonial relics and pagodas stand cheek by jowl with some of the dingiest examples of East European construction anywhere in Vietnam. Moreover, attractions here pander to the domestic tourist’s predilection for swan-shaped pedal-boats and pony-trek guides in full cowboy gear, while at night the city can be as bleak as an off-season ski resort." roughguides.com

Honestly I think the reviewer was a little too harsh and maybe was a little bit lonesome in the city of love. Of course there's a bit of touristic tackiness, The telecom tower may be shaped to look like the Eiffel tower but it looks a hell of a lot better than a regular tower and as for the swan shaped boats stop criticizing and actually try them, there's definitely worse ways to experience a lake. There is one point they make I do truly agree with, it did actually feel European, so what if it's the eastern side the point is that Dalat really felt like a different country. A combination of the twisty winding streets, the alpine climate and mountainous surrounds really made for a lovely atmosphere. And don't just take my word for it. While walking around the lake in the dark, freezing rain one of the Germans remarked;

"You know what, with those lights across the lake, this cold weather, the night markets, It really feels like Christmas back home. "

As for the night life, what more do you need than a night market with cheap, piping hot food, warm drinks, flaky pastries, smooth dairy products and three great friends?

Well if you are looking for a beverage with a bit more bite than the excellent local yogurt, try The Maze Bar. But I have a few very serious words of advice; don't go hard at pre-drinks before going here and don't come here if you are wider than average, have claustrophobia, paranoia, any heart conditions, pregnancy or you have a fear of being trapped in a tiny inescapable place during a fire. I guarantee it is like no bar you have ever been to. The best way I can describe it is; just imagine the kids from Enid Blyton's the Faraway tree grew up and decided to convert their magical childhood tree house into a dark and creepy bar.

It is quite similar in terms of architectural style to another major attraction of Da Lat, Madam Nga's Crazy House. It is absolutely batshit crazy and needs to be seen to be believed. You can also book a night there if you've always had the urge to live in a mix between a Witch's house and the magic mushroom trip Lewis Carol had while writing Alice in Wonderland.

Within Dalat we also visited an interesting weasel coffee farm, where weasel's are used to harvest coffee beans which go on to sell for $30 USD A CUP in Switzerland. We tried it for 100000 VND ($5 AUD basically a coffee back home). It was the nicest cup of weasel poo I've ever had, it was also the only cup of weasel poo I've had and probably the last one too.

We trekked around the city to the train station, stopping at a Korean Billiards hall on the way to escape the rain, then pushing onto the historic train station and the eerie old university.

Perhaps the highlight of the trip was the day trip we took on hired scooters to the Elephant falls. The mountain passes are beautiful, well maintained and amazingly fun to drive on a zippy little scooter. The trip was about 2 hours longer than it should have been due to some of the worst German leadership since....um... let's say.... Joachim Loew in the 2018 world cup. Anyway the falls are quite amazing but what is more amazing is how close you can get to them due to basically non-existent occupational health and safety regulations.

Although Nha Trang wasn't hit by the full extent of the Storm we still weren't able to make our way back to the airport to catch our flight home due to flooding. Instead we had to opt for a sleeper bus back to Ho Chi Minh City. Which is an experience in itself. And that is what travel is about, whether it was good or bad it is still an experience.

And anyway nobody likes listening to a story where everything goes to plan, give us some schadenfreude.

Until the next experience,

-T

All images were shot by either myself, Cary Symes, Simon Hoffman or Yann Souag in 2018 unless otherwise indicated.

The opinions expressed are purely my own and I am not endorsed or sponsored by a company or business in any way shape or form.