The Lovely Vietnam

We have been in this wonderful country for ten days now, and have found it to be most enjoyable. Many travelers had told us that Vietnam was their least-favorite country while traveling, and it almost discouraged us from coming at all. But now that we are here, Charlie and I can't understand why this was such a popular notion. Our first few days in Saigon exposed us the modernity of this flourishing country. Though it is officially a communist country, capitalism is booming everywhere. The quality of service here is much higher than that of Cambodia, and is on par with Thailand when looking at the variety of activities and ease of travel. Though it is a bit more expensive here than anywhere else we have gone, the rooms are always well-kept and include all the amenities (Having hot water is a beautiful thing if you haven't in months). Coming from Cambodia, it feels more like a first world country than another country recovering from war. While Cambodia doesn't have the resources, and too much corruption, to develop strong infrastructure (i.e. good roads, efficient transportation, healthcare etc), Vietnam has accomplished all of this.
The bustling city of Ho Chi Minh is as modern as any in the states. With garbage trucks, city maitnence workers, and a booming tourism economy.
After spending a few days in Ho Chi Minh (formerly known as Saigon before the communists took over) Charlie and I headed for the white sand beaches of Mui Ne.
Mui Ne consists of one long road that runs parallel to the South China Sea. Guesthouses, hotels and restaurants adorn both the beach side and inland side of the road. Palm trees line the tiled boardwalk that stretches the 3.5 km stretch of beach that is Mui Ne. The most noticeable thing about Mui Ne is that it is an international mecca for Kiteboarding. This awesome-looking sport combines wakeboarding with extreme kite-flying. We spent a few days watching hundreds of tanned, athletic people soar through the air doing tricks and stunts similiar to wakeboarding, or snowboarding. We were enthralled.
Of course we wanted to do it, but it turned out to be a rediculously expensive thing to learn on this touristy beach. To consol ourselves we hired a Jeep, with an Australian couple, and took off for a day of exploring the many white and red sand dunes in the area. This turned out to be the most incredible combination of desert and tropical ecosystems. Deep red creeks running through the most brilliant white sand dunes and palm trees looming overhead. The contrast was unlike anything we had ever seen.
We decided to leave the next morning, because it was a bit painful to sit on the beach and watch everyone else out in the water having fun. Especially because we had the desire but lacked the money to try. We decided, anyway, that we were definitely mountain people who had been on the beach too long.
And this is how we ended up in the wonderful mountain town of Dalat.
This is one of my favorite places we have been in Asia. It has the cool breeze of higher elevation, fresh pine scent and a French influence that is hard to ignore. It feels like we have dropped out of Asia and into a small European mountain town. The buildings have the destinct French style of architecture, with lots of whitewashed walls, tall vaulted ceilings, plenty of arches, pillars and even a miniture Eiffle Tower. There are little cafes everywhere, sometimes four or five on a block. And this isn't even the best part. It is what lies just outside town that has captured our hearts- plenty of mountains and freshwater.
Charlie and I met the coolest Canadian couple, whom are very much the Candian version of ourselves. They too have been traveling together for about three months and it was nice to hear and be around another couple that have spent so much quality time together. Together, without offending anyone, we could lighheartedly vent about the little quirks that we all find a bit annoying in our much-loved traveling companions. To say the least, we hit it off and were glad to actually have some friends for a few consecutive days.
Our first full day in Dalat was spent on rented motorbikes touring around the countryside. Dalat is well known for its good climate and soil for growing every kind of familiar vegetable and fruit out there(The wine made here is delicious, and only costs $1 to $2 a bottle). As the four of us drove through the cool mountain air and looked out over acres of organized farmland full of flowers, cucumbers, tomatoes, grapes etc, we realized what a fertile pocket of the country we had found. All the food here is fresh, farmed in an efficient manner and compare greately to the farmland around Missoula. People live really well here. They eat well, they drink well, and they live in a beautiful forested, waterfall and lake ridden area of Vietnam.
We found some impressive waterfalls, swam in the first clean freshwater lake we have seen in Asia and ate fresh fruits and veggies in the countryside markets. It was amazing.
Yesterday (our second day in Dalat) Charlie and I went to the market to purchase cucumbers, tomatoes, cream cheese, fresh shredded garlic, baguettes and, of course, some local wine to take on a romantic picnic by one of the many mountain lakes we had found. We drove our bright red motorbike the 15 minutes out of town and to the lake, set up our beach mat and chess board, and settled into the bush-ridden shores for an afternoon of relaxing. We made delicious fresh sandwhiches, which we haven't been able to find in Asia prior, and enjoyed the cooler temperatures of the mountains. It felt like home. Enjoying nature in the daytime and drinking wine with our new down-to-earth friends in the evening.
Though we could stay much longer, we have decided to leave in the morning to head north, as we only have two weeks left here before we fly from Hanoi back to Bangkok. We are off to see Hoi An, known for it's fine silk and plethora of tailors, for a day or two. Then we will see a bit of Hue, another older beach town with much history, before heading deep into the Northwest to some mountains that are said to be "The Alps of Asia' which sounds right up our alley.
For now we will continue enjoy ourselves and the romantic air of this quaint little town. It is so nice to be in a place that smells like home.

Much Love.