Street scenes - Dalat

Colourful Cho Da Lat (Central market) is filled with some of the local ethnic minorities who come to sell their produce.




Will be back on 3 May so until then I have posted some photos from the streets of Dalat.

Prenn Waterfall

Prenn Waterfall, situated 5 km south of Dalat, descends 15 metres across the mouth of a cave and is accessible from a small bridge..






Popular with Vietnamese honeymooners it is surrounded by a small kitschy theme park with elephant and pony rides, shoot-em stalls, crocodile pool, souvenirs etc

Bamboo Forest Meditation Centre

Set in a bamboo forest on the outskirts of Dalat, Thien Vien Truc Lam (Bamboo Forest Meditation Centre) was built in 1993 with donations from Vietnamese living in other countries – mainly America.

It is a Zen Buddist monastery with 90 monks and 100 nuns in residence.

A large hall contains a statue of Buddah holding a lotus flower, and the alter is covered in lotus paraphernalia.

Sitting on top of a hill overlooking Paradise Lake it is very peaceful.

Ede People

The Ede people, a minority group living in the Southern Highlands near Dalat, lead a very meager existence.

The government tried to rehouse these people in a nearby town, providing them with new accommodation with running water and sewage but nearly all of the houses remain empty, as these proud people prefer to live their traditional life herding animals and living off the land.

The people and the scenery look very South American; I kept having to remind myself I was in Vietnam.

Flower Gardens of Dalat

Vuon Hoa Da Lai (The Flower Gardens) are a quiet retreat from the bustle of Dalat’s central business district.

Established in 1966 they are filled with flowers and a stunning array of bonsai.

We were the only visitors that day and the horses that were hitched ready for tourist rides were resting.

Le Petit Paris

No you aren’t seeing things.

This isn’t the Eiffel Tower but a telecommunications tower erected in Dalat in 1997.
The top of it was covered in mist this night.

In the heyday of French colonialism, Dalat was known as Le Petit Paris.
The town has many old French villas, and is the honeymoon capital of Vietnam.

Doorway and reflections

I sat waiting for someone to come out and sit on this chair but no one did.

This elderly gentleman was doing what I was doing - watching the passing parade of people on the street below.

Street stalls Dalat

On the street below our hotel, lively commercial stalls were set up each morning.

The cool highland climate enables a wide range of fruit and vegetables to be grown.

Some stalls are so small they can fit on a large cane tray.

The street sellers of Dalat

In Dalat I sat on our small hotel terrace and photographed the street sellers. It is one of my favourite pass times when traveling.

As you can see these hard-working people are all women.

Drive to Dalat...with legs crossed.

The long drive from the coast to Dalat in the southern highlands is filled with stunning views.

Road-stop conveniences are few and far between though.


PS Good to be back.