Golf 2 Hotel Dalat

... in green houses to protect them from the elements, whereas the remaining vegetables are grown in the open air;
- coffee plantation, where we learned quickly how it is made. Apparently, the best coffee here is called the weasel coffee (no, the weasels don't poop it out). These creatures, being intelligent little rodents, know exactly when to pick the beans at their best. But they only eat the skin of the coffee bean, and they drop the raw beans on the ...

... can't wait to get up and out tomorrow (after lingering over the breakfast of course..). Funny isn't it, I couldn't put my finger on it, but I felt in a little bit of a waking daze since I arrived in Vietnam, but thinking about it now, I just think it's because being at Mark and Sarah's was so much like just being at home with your mates, which is great, but I came here for something else, and I think I've begun to find it.

... stop was a house were the family made the traditional reed/grass brooms that are used all over Asia. The men go tothe woods hunting wild pig and deer and bring back the grasses to the women who weave them into the brooms. Some pigs and a vege garden out back and some rice paddies down the road ensure the family are feed and have aan income from using abundant natural resources from the local forest. Super sweet! We stopped at some coffe plantations to be told that ...

27th August
Arrived in Dalat around 6ish, chose a guest house and up here in the mountains you really need hot water, there is free Internet and breakfast all for $10. Being on a mountain it is pretty cold up here not by UK standards but a lot colder than what we have got used to and so I have used a jumper for the first time. It is very pretty up here, there are many French colonial style buildings, a lake and lots of ...

... I hit it off with a pair of sisters from Belgium. It was nice to finally have a day with a pair of girls - I've been primarily traveling and spending my time with guys on this trip so it was a relief to have some girl talk! The first stop was the aquarium of Nha Trang. It was a fairly typical aquarium, including sharks, a tide pool and various fish. There was a spectacular view of Nha Trang from a tower at the top, and I was able to get some great pictures. Our next stop ...

Mue Ne Beach

When we got to Mue Ne beach we
realized that the rain season had officially arrived. The rain came
around mid afternoon every day back in Saigon and it seemed to carry
over into Mue Ne as well. We arrived in the early evening and quickly
found a place to drop our bags and grab some food. There are supposedly
really nice bungalows right on the ocean for decent prices at Saigon
Cafe..since it was so windy and the waves were ...

... gesture for me to step under a large cut out heart to hold my loved one prom style. Yuck, give me a break!

Overall, my stay in Dalat was pleasant, though peculiar. Glad I made the trip out to the mountain town, especially since I met a lovely lady whom I spent the day with, had a dinner date with and offered me a stay in Australia. Yay! Thanks Alison! Hmm...maybe it's time to spend some time "down under?"



　

... course male travellers are even luckier as they can accept lunch and dinner invites without so much fear that there's a hidden agenda!

That evening was Kim's last night so we had our last street meal together. The street food in Saigon is amazing.... their national dish is noodle soup which comes with meat, chillies, lemongrass etc.. and on the streets with the locals you can get a big bowl for 50p! Lots of other nice dishes too... amazing food... almost as ...

... of the war.

It was absolutely blown to bits, and serves as a very vivid example of the destruction to which Vietnam was exposed back in the 70s. You can walk around the ruins of the house, and if you look up you can see through the ceiling due to all the ...

... have loved it, they have 4 branches along the Vietnamese coast, so if you're ever over here be sure to check them out, they're called "Rainbow Divers".

The cafe had all sorts of home comforts, from toast with marmite (!) to cheese toasties, English tea, bangers & mash, and it all looked great. We got a big plate of fruit and a couple of toasties with some shakes, it was really good.

Sadly we were ...