Part 16: Dalat, Vietnam (#2)

The sea monster bar at Crazy House in Dalat.

Continuing adventures in Dalat... there was so much to explore - both in the city and the surrounding mountains. Even with all that we did, there is still a ton that we didn't get to. The area is truly amazing, and we will definitely be back for more...

Datanla Waterfall

We were happy to have Bo join us for a scooter foray into our greater surroundings, to the adventure park at Datanla waterfall. It's a beautiful 7-tiered cascade, said to be a dwelling place for fairies. It's also a recreational area with the longest zip-line in Vietmam (1500 meters), an alpine roller coaster, canyoneering, and hiking trails. The zip line required a blood pressure test, which some of us were leery of, so we opted for the alpine carts.

The steep and tightly winding track had us shrieking as we raced in tight coils and loops down the mountain. At the end of the ride there were beautiful views of the falls - as well as all the inevitable weirdness. In Vietnam, enjoying nature is often augmented by oversized concrete sculptures in varying degrees of the bizarre. Why not enjoy the foliage while sitting on a giant, hot pink concrete leaf; or relax with a huge golden frog playing the saxophone; or climb out of a giant dinosaur egg? It was well done enough that the kitsch was part of the charm. The guys had fun competing at archery - I don’t remember who won; they were all pretty good. We watched people come flying in on the zip-line for a bit before heading home, vowing to come back and be first in line for the carts.

The Disco Buddha

One of the two temples visible from our windows had a giant reclining Guanyin (Bodhisattva of Compassion, mercy, and kindness) on the roof. It’s affectionately known as the “Disco Buddha Temple,” because they occasionally light it up in different colors. At night I loved to watch the glow of the distant flickering lights, like giant candles on the hillside. Eventually we made our way there, and its funky vibe made it a favorite. Surrounded by the pine forest, it is relatively small and intimate - but like many places in Vietnam, it turned out to be much bigger than expected on the inside. 

Ornate carvings and antiquities filled the interior of the halls and pagodas, while the outside was flanked with long rows of super quirky, rustic statues, all painted bright gold. It felt more like being in someone's back yard than a temple. The enormous Guyanyin also feels very “home-made,” with a boxy head and strangely long fingers - her body bent at an abrupt right angle. Apparently you can go inside the head of the figure, but we didn’t have any luck gaining access. (If we had Bo with us, I'm sure it would have been a different story.) The best part was that we were practically the only people there. It seems they don’t get a lot of visitors, as we were definitely a source of interest to the monks. One of them was very excited to demonstrate the Yogi skills that he learned in India, planking in mid air and doing a one-finger head stand for our benefit. Another just stopped and stared at us for a while, but he was smiling the whole time, so we quietly sat and smiled together until it was time for us to go.

Crazy House and Mazebar

Two of the biggest attractions in Dalat are what could only be described as "extreme architecture." Architect Viet Nga started construction on the Hang Nga Guesthouse in 1990, and is still planning new additions. After years of working on state-owned developments with little creativity, she wanted a chance to express herself. She started her vision of the guesthouse using paintings rather than blue-prints, and the result was something the locals could only describe as “Crazy House.” It’s an over-the-top fantasy dream-scape of completely organic, dripping forms, meant to reflect our connection to nature and the need to protect it. Her surreal, fairy-tale world was not immediately understood, and pending bankruptcy gave her the idea to start selling tickets to tourists. She has since gained international recognition, and comparisons to Gaudi and Salvador Dali.

The hotel is a cluster of chambers branching out from a central concrete tree. The 11 rooms each have a theme and meaning: the tiger (China), the Bear (love), the Ant (Vietnam), etc.  Some of the more memorable features were the spider-web garden; a Hansel and Gretel gingerbread house that looked like it was made from melting fondant, and the “3rd floor seabed” - with walkways twisting and winding through each other, suspended high in the air over the glass ceiling of the aquarium. Finally reaching the bottom of the aquarium feels like stepping into a scene from the Georges Méliès 1902 science fiction classic “A Trip to the Moon."  A giant, painted shark swims up from the floor to swallow you whole, and the bar in the corner is a voraciosly grinning sea monster. We crawled over the place like excited ants, but there were still some areas we never figured out how to get into. Too much fun!

The nearby Maze Bar, or 100 Roofs Cafe, took inspiration from Crazy House, but did itself justice as a venue in its own right - capitalizing on a building space that is narrow, deep, and tall. The main bar and cashier are at the very front of the ground floor. Then, true to the Alice in Wonderland logic of Vietnam, you go down to go up. The rest is crawling and climbing, often literally, through what feels like a rabbit warren extending up 7 floors. There are plenty of areas where you could go, but definitely shouldn’t - especially with a drink in hand (or in your belly). Absolutely every single inch is covered in some kind of decoration, and tiny alcoves of seats and tables are built into every crevice. There are a couple other bar areas and bathrooms scattered throughout, but they seemed few and far between. We had the luxury of exploring the place nearly to ourselves. I can’t imagine it full of inebriated tourists trying to find their way back to their “table.”

Finally reaching the equally impressive rooftop garden felt like a real accomplishment. It would have been nice to celebrate it, but there was no way any of us was going to go back down to get another beverage, haha! I guess that was the benefit and the drawback of going in the afternoon, when everything but the entrance bar was closed. There were a few other intrepid explorers at the top, with dazed expressions of wonder on their faces, and we felt like we were all in on some kind of secret. The building across the street also had a rooftop garden, and the excited people waving to us clearly understood our recent ascent. We definitely deserved a Scout badge for making it to the top.

Solo fun

Most of the time David and I did everything together, but there were a couple of exceptions. David went to Ho Chi Minh City with Ed for 3 nights, leaving Buffy and I to our own devices. Of course we couldn’t let them have all the fun, so we got the full-service package at GiaoChi Legend Spa. Almost 5 hours of services with an included dinner came to about as much as a good massage back home. After the sauna, hot herbal massages, facials, body wraps and scrubs, and hot soaking tubs full of rose petals, we felt like royalty. Then we sat down to huge bowls of fantastic vegan dumpling soup. They gave us banana bread to take home to our husbands, but we ate that, too, of course. Totally worth it! 

During the girls’ temple day, Ed and David took off on a scooter adventure of their own. They rode around much of Tuyen Lam Lake, taking in views of the beautiful nearby golf course from above, since David was feeling a bit too rusty to play a round. Eventually Ed convinced him to hit the links at the Dalat Palace Golf Club in town, filling out a foursome with Frank the grumpy Italian chef and another friend. Of course, David wasn’t nearly as rusty as he thought he would be, and had a great time golfing this georgous course, complete with mandatory caddies (standard throughout Vietnam). He also got to see another side of Frank - the namesake for the only male goat at Blue Mountain Farm, and a story in his own right - outside of the restaurant, while doing something that felt very close to home.

Other Temples

There were so many beautiful temples everywhere, but Truc Lam and Linh Phuoc were two of the most memorable, especially because of how we traveled to them. To reach Truc Lam, we rode a cable car with Ed and Buffy from the edge of Dalat to the shores of Tuyen Lam Lake. The temple is located on a forested hill about 7 km from town. The various buildings, bell and drum towers, and the gold-domed monastery were stunning. But the real highlight here were the immense grounds and beautiful gardens. A large central fountain featured a huge rotating marble sphere, magically suspended by water. Trees with braided lattice trunks lined the various pathways, leading through the pines to rock gardens and meandering streams. Even with tons of visitors, it was so serene that you could imagine giving up everything to live there - at least for a temple stay, anyway.

Then there was Linh Phuoc Pagoda. We took the steam train from the vintage French rail station/museum in Dalat, built in 1938. We slowly rolled past dwellings and greenhouses so close that you could step off the train onto someone’s back stoop. Lots of locals came out to wave, and we were even serenaded by a live saxophone player on our 30 minute ride to the neighboring town of Trai Mat. Once there, the whole train load of passengers walked the few blocks to visit what is affectionately known as the “scraps temple.” 

The entire complex is covered in 3-dimensional mosaics using broken vases, dishes, bowls, and other household items. Hundreds of monks, nuns, and artisans completed what seems like a lifetime of work in 4 years, from giant dragons to thousands of tiny lotus flowers. The gift shop is full of enormous wooden and marble furniture, far too heavy to actually be moved. But the best parts were the depictions of Heaven, Earth, and Hell. Of course, the Hell section was the most imaginative and elaborate - a winding underground maze far better than any Halloween haunted house. The Earth section was appropriately the smallest - almost an afterthought. It featured a beautiful grove of sacred trees and meditating monks, full of birdsong. The Quan Amphitheater represents Heaven, and holds the tallest indoor (12 meters) Guanyin Buddha. She is flanked by 3 tiers of 324 additional statues, topped by a ceiling of painted clouds. Another nearby 17 meter statue outside is covered with 650,000 strawflowers. The list of additional accolades that this place holds is a long one.

Scootin' Around

Our most favorite Dalat adventures were scooting around the country with Ed and Buffy. One such afternoon was our river picnic near Ankroet Power plant, and on to Devil Mountain. We rode down through the valley of greenhouses, past the outlying farms, and into the pine shrouded mountains. Our route eventually led along a large reservoir dotted with rest areas of roadside hammocks and families grilling lunch. We rode past occasional herds of water buffalo, wallowing in the mud or being driven accross the road. The woods gradually grew thicker as we made our way to Suoi Vang (Golden Spring) and Ankoret. The first hydroelectric plant in Vietnam, it still functions to supply electricity to nearby villas. It’s a beautiful stone facility built by the French in the 40’s (sadly under terrible conditions). From there we made our way to a spot in the middle of the river to fluff our butts and relax, before moving on to another venture into the deeply surreal at Devil Mountain.

Something about this area encourages people to express their imaginations on a large scale, in spectacular fashion. Devil Mountain was a perfect example of this wonderful kind of crazy. We were expecting a goofy tourist trap, but it was incredibly cool. Based on the folklore of the local Co-ho tribes about caretaker monster spirits, you enter by walking through the gaping maw of a giant monster into fog-filled spooky caverns. When you emerge, an indigenous, one armed “Magnetic Man” adorns himself with pots and spoons while munching on glowing coals. You then traverse a garden maze full of mythical sculptures and bizarre, rare fish. Rocket crocodiles lurk ready to bite, God fish wait to be petted, and huge albino catfish come boiling (seriously, it's the only word to describe it) to the surface of their pond for pellets of food. There are traditional houses full of impressive collections of artifacts, a huge purple suspension bridge over the kayaking pond, and a giant birdcage. And so much more. Best of all, we were almost the only people there, and had a private tour of the whole place.

Play if you dare:

Albino catfish feeding time at Devil Mountain, outside Dalat.

Our last adventure before leaving Dalat was to the Cuong Hoan Silk Factory, and Mongoland. Another scooter ride in the mountains took us to Nam Ban, to the silk factory. We stopped for a break along the way at what looked like just a restaurant, but turned out to be a homestay with acres of tables and landscaped gardens, and of course photo spots galore. The proprietress picked figs from a tree for us to try, and gave us a pitcher of free tea! When we got to the factory the employees were all eating lunch, so we decided to do the same. We feasted at a spot situated over a pond, across the street from a giant temple, then returned to watch the ladies of the factory hard at work. There was no tour - you just paid the fee and walked freely around the factory. We were able to watch the entire silk-making process, from soaking cocoons to weaving thread. However, we declined the opportunity to eat roasted silkworm, haha. The products were beautiful and this was one of the times that being limited to what we can carry was truly painful. So hard to pass up!

From there it was on to Mongoland. The name is a mash-up of “Mongolian grassland,” but there are many cultures represented in this weird, giant petting zoo. And of course, you can rent costumes for the inevitable photo shoots. But none of this was the reason we came. The real attraction of Mongoland is the GIANT “dry slide” - the largest in Vietnam (and there are many). It’s a huge, plastic technicolor carpet of rollers over 3 giant hills, that you fly down on inner tubes. We were super happy that Bo was able to meet us at the park. We lined up holding each other’s tubes across the top of the track, and then plunged screaming with laughter all the way to the bottom. Of course, there was lots of advice on how not to break your legs on the way down. (Safety third!). Once we were done, we had to do it again, and Bo had the brilliant idea to ask if one of the attendants would get a video for us. We were just hoping to get a shot from the top, but the bored worker took the opportunity to ride down with us, filming us shrieking the whole way. The third time we went down (rides are unlimited) they turned on the water spigots, and we went so fast that we almost hit the backstop at the bottom. We didn't quite muster the courage to do it backwards - next time!

Check out the video:

Mongoland: our last wild ride in Dalat!

Flinging ourselves down a giant slide and trying not to break our legs in the process seemed like the most appropriate way possible to end our time in Dalat. We are definitely counting on our return. It’s certainly a place that will never get boring or predictable. It was so hard to leave, but we were also excited to branch out again. We had 4 days in Hanoi planned to finish our stay in Vietnam, then would be moving on to 2 weeks in Taiwan. Next stop, Hanoi…