The Peace Cafe Wars and Riding Easy
Trip Start
Feb 05, 2008
1
35
70
Trip End
Ongoing
Dalat,
Dalat,
Vietnam
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Claudia had told me to make sure I try the delicious mango chicken with rice at the Peace Cafe. I decided to stay at the Peace Hotel, thinking that's where I'd also find the Peace Cafe. Sure enough, there's a Peace Cafe in the lobby and right next door there's 'The Original Peace Cafe'. And, there's another 'The Original Peace Cafe' two doors down from the Peace Hotel 2 which is just around the corner from the Peace Hotel 1 where I am staying
Dalat from my hotel window
. As an aside, apparently there are no trademark laws in Vietnam and it creates a real problem for some businesses. Case in point is the Kangaroo Cafe in Hanoi, a very successful cafe and travel agency established by an Auzie. There are now two imitators! The logos and lettering on their signage are identical to the original. The two ladies running the Peace Hotel and Peace Cafe (original?) are funny. They order you about: "You sit there", "You have something to eat", "What you doing today". I was unable to get a straight answer as to which Peace Cafe was the original. I decided to go with the one in my hotel. The highly recommended mango chicken was outstanding. The following night I would try the one over by the Peace Hotel 2 with Heather from Auz and Eilidh from England and it was not good. We did ask the crazy lady running that place which one was truly the original and of course she claimed it was hers.
As you travel through Vietnam you hear about the Easy Riders. It's a relatively small group of tour guides who ride motorcycles and take backpackers on anywhere from one day to seven day tours throughout the south-central plans. They'll take you up to Hoi An or down to Saigon. They operate primarily out of Dalat but there's another chapter in Nha Trang, and they are assholes
Fish for sale
. The guys in Dalat are really cool. They hang out in various hotel cafes, including mine. When you go to there you can expect a sales pitch and really, you'd better be prepared to take one of their tours, even if only for a day. It's soft sell all the way, which is a nice change. They show you loads of testimonials from their many satisfied customers. I ended up opting for a two day tour that would leave me further up in the highlands and well off the beaten path in a place called Buon Ma Thout. From there I would catch a night bus to Saigon, arriving at 4:30 a.m., ugh. These tours aren't cheap at $60 a day, not including accomos and food, but the testimonials promised a unique experience and that I would see the 'real Vietnam'.
