Dalat - The City of Love

Well, some may call it the City of Love.  I call it the City of Hills! But I will start from the beginning. We managed to get ourselves and our stuff down to the lobby by 5am. Our last member of the group showed up last night. She is quite young and had no idea she would be with a bunch of geriatrics. She is a doctor from London - so we are good hands there. Another piece of good news is that Hugh's luggage finally showed up at 10:30 last night. It got stranded in Singapore. So all is well with everyone.

The bus ride to the airport took about 20 min or so and of course, the plane was a bit delayed. It was only a half hour flight and we were at the hotel around 9. Could not check in yet. So there was a lot of scurrying around changing in the lobby bathrooms and organizing luggage and bicycles. Finally got going. The air is much nicer here and the temperature is a reasonable 70-75 degrees. The traffic pattern is pretty much the same as Saigon - maybe not as congested, but just as nuts. Cycling through the roundabouts was a master challenge.

The town was built by the French in the early 1900's as a retreat from the heat down south. So there is a lot of French influence. Our first stop was an old train station now used as a tourist spot and wedding venue. It wasn't until after the station when we were headed out of town that the cycling became more challenging. Dalat is about 4500ft high and we climbed up another 1200ft. As we got higher, it got hotter. I admit to walking up the rest of a climb at one point. Just didn't have any more gas in the tank. The downhills were great, though. As I was panting, Geoff was able to get some decent pix of some of the scenery. 

Lunch was a soup bar that was just delicious. From there it was only 1km to the hotel. I managed the 35km today but not sure about the 100km - including a mountain pass - tomorrow. Not sure that's going to happen. Might be a nice bus ride for me - and I'm not sure I'll be alone.

We relaxed a bit, took a shower, and headed out to see what Dalat had to offer. We went down to

the lake that we had biked around earlier. Visited the Market - which was starting to close up. Dalat is known for their flowers, vegetables and fruits. They also have several coffee plantations. We were told to get a cup of Dalat coffee before leaving town. We thought about having one at the lake. Sat there for a bit. We weren't very comfortable so we left.  Went to the hotel restaurant,which is across the street from the hotel, instead. It was nice and quiet - much better place to rest. Sat at the bar and watched as the waitress made this wonderful Vietnamese- style ice coffee. Yum! 

Tonight's dinner was at the Dalat House. Another multi-course food explosion. The guides are selling more Vietnam bike stuff. Geoff got another bike shirt (which we'll share). Tomorrow is another early day. The bus is leaving at 7:30 to get us out of the city to start biking. Lots of Ibuprofen and a couple of beers, and my body is starting to feel somewhat normal. We'll see how it goes tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Next time... The Long and Winding Road