Well, we have done so much since we last updated – where to start? We arrived in Dalat last Saturday afternoon by bus. For this leg we chose a different Open Tour company and the bus was only half full. Much better. If anyone is coming this way avoid TM Brothers (also known as Camel Tours) and go with An Phu.
We found a friendly hotel called Viet Thanh and paid only $5USD for a room that would have been perfect if the sheets weren’t synthetic. But really, who can complain for that price?
We had read in the Lonely Planet about a group of freelance motorcycle guides in Dalat called Easy Riders who do tours of the area. It says in the book not to worry about finding them as they’ll find you and this was certainly the case. As we were checking in they approached us and we came back down to talk to them after dumping the bags in the room.
There is a lot to see around Dalat, and as it is in the highlands the area is quite hilly and difficult to get around by foot or bicycle. That’s why these guys do so well. We decided to do a full day tour with them and they picked us up the next morning.
Dan and Tien were excellent guides and we had plenty of stops to stretch the legs and see things. Amongst other things we visited a pagoda decorated with beer bottle mosaics, a village with a large statue of a chicken (apparently they chose this over one of Ho Chi Minh), and local coffee and flower farms. We enjoyed the day so much, and Dan and Tien were so friendly, that we decided to do more with them – a two night tour of the Central Highlands from Dalat to Buon Me Thuot.
The next morning they picked us up, strapped the backpacks onto the bikes and we were off! These few days were the highlight of our trip so far. The roads around the Central Highlands had very little traffic so for a lot of the time it was just us and the fantastic scenery. Dan and Tien were very careful drivers and we felt safe with them on the bikes. They were true professionals and well practiced at what they do.
This trip gave us a chance to see things we would not have been able to on our own. We stopped in many little villages and visited people’s homes and farms and they were all so welcoming and friendly. Everyone wanted to know if we were married and how many kids we have. Apparently we’re a bit slow by Vietnamese standards in that regard!
Dan and Tien explained all sorts of things to us from silk worm farming to coffee growing to the Vietnam War (or the American War as it is often called here).
We spent the first night at a place called Lak Lake and here we saw the only other two tourists of the whole three days. These two Australian girls were having a terrible time on a minibus tour and had spent the previous night sleeping on the floor next to a squat toilet.
On the second day of the tour we visited a minority village (Jun Village) near Lak Lake and then headed for Buon Me Thuot. Along the way we stopped and watched some road works to see how they cut the granite blocks by hand. Hard work!
After a coffee in Buon Me Thuot, Vietnam’s premier coffee growing area, we headed out of town and spent the afternoon visiting waterfalls where we had a picnic lunch and a swim in a natural waterhole. We spent the second night near Dray Sap falls in an A-frame bungalow with a view high over the river.
On Wednesday morning Dan and Tien drove us back into Buon Me Thuot and we tried a local specialty for breakfast called Bo Ne which is a sizzling plate with a thin beefsteak, a pork meatball and a fried egg. It was yummy! It was then time to say goodbye and they took us to the bus station to get the bus to Saigon. Unfortunately we have misplaced their business cards, but if anyone is planning to visit Dalat definitely look out for Dan and Tien!
The bus to Saigon was packed and we were at the front with no leg room at all but a great view out the windscreen! It is much more fun being packed onto a bus with Vietnamese people than with backpackers. Dan and Tien had told us this trip would take 7 hours but in the Lonely Planet it says it takes 20 hours so we were a little concerned. Luckily it was (again) a case of Lonely Planet being wrong and the journey took exactly 7 hours.
Along the way we were treated to a video of a Vietnamese variety concert. It featured an Asian version of Holly Valance singing such hits as ‘My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard." It also featured a comedy routine by a Vietnamese man dressed as an Aussie. He came out wearing a bonds singlet, a hat with dangly corks and carrying a football and a can of VB. Waltzing Matilda was playing in the background. He proceeded to teach the crowd how to do "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi". He also explained what the VB was and threw the football into the crowd. The lucky girl who caught it had to scull the VB which she did very nicely.
So…we’re now in Saigon and have spent today working out where to go from here. We have decided to head straight to Phnom Penh by bus on Saturday. We thought about going to the Mekong and entering Cambodia by boat but need to save time (and money!) That means tomorrow is our last day in Vietnam. It will be sad to leave as we’ve had a great time here (again!) but we’re looking forward to Cambodia.
Check the photo album for some pics of our Easy Rider tour.
Happy Birthday Tim, for tomorrow!
