| nomadicsamuel.com Dalat is known as a popular hillside retreat for those who are looking to escape the heat and humidity of cities such as Saigon. It's scenery is gorgeous, architecture impressive, and has a lot to offer. The following is a 30 part slideshow series showcasing Dalat. Dalat is quite different from anywhere else you'll visit in Vietnam. You would almost be forgiven for thinking you'd stumbled into the French Alps in springtime. This was certainly how the former colonists treated it -- escaping to their chalets to enjoy the cooler climate. The French feel is compounded by a radio mast shaped like the Eiffel Tower and the local bohemian artists' predilection for swanning around in berets. Dalat is small enough to remain charming, and the surrounding countryside is blessed with lakes, waterfalls, evergreen forests and gardens. Local products include silk, garden vegetables and flowers (especially beautiful hydrangeas), which are sold all over southern Vietnam. But the biggest contribution to the economy is tourism: more than 800, 000 domestic tourists and another 80, 000 foreigners visit here every year. It's the country's favourite honeymoon spot and still retains the final word in Vietnamese kitsch. The Dalat area was once famous for hunting and a 1950s brochure boasted that 'a two-hour drive from the town leads to several game-rich areas abounding in deer, roe, peacocks, pheasants, wild boar, black bear, wild caws, panthers, tigers, gaurs and elephants'. So ... |
