Da Lat and Nha Trang

Da Lat is located at an altitude of 1500 meters, so it was immediately cooler there. For us, it was really nice to have only 22 degrees after all the hot days, while the Vietnamese were already walking around with thick down jackets and hats. The city is really beautiful. It is hilly and in the middle of the city there is a beautiful park with a lake. Despite the size of the city, it had a very cozy atmosphere.

Crazy House and Maze Bar

In Cat Tien, we learned about the Crazy House and the Maze Bar from another traveler. These are buildings in the style of enchanted houses. There were paths in all directions and after a short time, we didn't know where we had already been. A very interesting architecture. So we went to the Crazy House first and then had a beer at the Maze Bar.

Easy Rider Tour

The next day, we had our motorcycle tour with the Easy Riders. We had heard a lot of good things about it and we were not disappointed.

Of the three different tour options, we chose the one that included all the sights around the city. In addition, we could also add a cable car ride on our own request. We were curious if we hadn't planned too much for one day.

In the morning, we were picked up by our two guides, Ken and Marley, with their motorcycles. Our tour started at a flower plantation, where Marley told us a lot about the meanings of the different colors of flowers. So 3 flowers mean 'I love you' and 5 flowers mean 'I really love you'. However, white and yellow flowers should never be given. The colors mean bad luck. There are countless greenhouses around Da Lat. Due to the rather mild climate, Da Lat is the perfect place for flowers.

Then we went to a coffee plantation. Vietnam is one of the largest coffee exporters, along with Brazil. But here, there was also a special feature. Civet coffee. The civets are fed coffee beans, and the coffee is made from the beans that they then excrete. However, Kathrin hardly noticed a difference from regular coffee.

Stop 3 was a cricket farm, where these insects are bred to be sold on the market. Here, we also had a plate of fried crickets to try. At first we were a bit skeptical, but the fried crickets were really delicious and a good breakfast😊.

Then we went to a silk factory. We were first shown the silkworms that produce silk. They spin themselves into silk cocoons. These are then placed in hot water, which kills the larvae and rolls up the silk from the cocoon. The dead larvae are also eaten again. Of course, there was also a taste test here. The larvae tasted a bit like peanuts, but not as delicious as the crickets.

Before the lunch break, we visited the laughing Buddha and the neighboring Elephant Falls. After seeing them, it was time for lunch.

After lunch, we had to ride the longest and most uncomfortable stretch of the day. We went through fields and muddy holes towards the Pongour Falls. These are the largest falls near Da Lat. They were really cool because there are different levels over which the water falls.

On the way back to Da Lat, we made some more short stops in a small village of the Kho minority, a mushroom farm, and the Paradies Lake.

Here, you take a cable car for about 20 minutes over Da Lat and enjoy the view of the city and the beautiful mountains.

After this stop, our tour ended in the early evening. Contrary to our concerns, we had enough time at each stop and didn't have to rush. The two guides were in a great mood and we always felt safe on the motorcycles. All in all, a really great tour that we can highly recommend to everyone.

In the evening, we went to the Artist Alley Restaurant. A restaurant in a sort of gallery, where the owner's paintings (a well-known Vietnamese painter and art professor) are exhibited.

From Da Lat, we headed to Nha Trang Beach.

Nha Trang

The journey to Nha Trang was not very pleasant. We took an uncomfortable sleeper bus down the winding road towards the sea. Our travel sickness tablets paid off here😉.

When we arrived in Nha Trang, we went straight to the beach. It is really beautiful, but it is very touristy. One huge hotel follows the next. And apparently, Nha Trang is very popular with the Russians. All the signs in the shops and the menus were in Russian, and even the beach vendors spoke Russian. Unfortunately, the weather was not really suitable for the beach. Since a typhoon had raged on the coast a few weeks ago, the sea was still very dirty and not really blue. On top of that, it started raining, so we went back to the hotel after a short time.

To make matters worse, another tropical storm was announced for the next day. It wasn't overly strong, but that meant the beach was out of the question again for the next day. But we still had one day left, and the weather was really nice, so we could spend the whole day at the beach. So the stop in Nha Trang was worthwhile after all.