♪ there's no vietnam like french vietnam, it's the best vietnam in the land ♪

got to dalat yesterday night at about 6, and it was already about 75 degrees. nice up here! one of the more popular domestic vacation destinations, dalat sits at roughly 4,620 feet above sea level (says so right here on my watch). anne's post pretty much sums it up (see link at right). apparently there was a gentlemen's agreement not to conduct any warrin' here back during the american invasion. that way the really rich people from both sides could continue to visit and not have to worry about the hundreds of thousands of deaths.

not so much in the way of pineapple in these parts, but it sure as hell is coffee country. they make it strong, brewed right on top of your cup. i think that's part of the french influence. i've heard this place likened to towns in the french alps (except everything's in vietnamese). it's mad cheap as well, sweet hotel room with like 70 channels and 12' ceilings for $10/night. we went to an awesome dinner last night, each had two drinks, and parted with about 11 dollars and change.

i'm hoping to find a mountain bike here, although i'd then have to cart it around vietnam with me until anne splits for kobe next sunday. there are plenty of bike tour agencies that will probably sell me one of their used western bikes. i need something sturdy enough to make it from ho chi minh city to bangkok over about 14-20 days. i'm pretty excited about that leg of the trip. haven't had any cardiovascular exercise (other than walking) in a while.


Pictures of Bangkok:

these are my money rented kicks. i was lookin pretty smooth.

me, anne, and krista, about two hours into clubbin'.

yup. it was like that.

a huge friggin' monitor lizard. we saw more cool wildlife in this downtown park than in most other parts of the country.

Pictures of Ho Chi Minh City (saigon):

view from a rooftop bar at this swank-ass hotel downtown. drinks were like six bucks each! never goin back there...

a fine example of infrastructure. this sort of scene is all over the place. you have to do a lot of ducking.

"sidewalk". i don't know if there is or ever was a vietnamese translation. this is one of the quieter ones, but walking is clearly not the intended purpose here. these planters blocked the path about every 25 feet. on most other "sidewalks", people just park their motorbikes, wash their dishes, or sit around and suck their teeth (cat-call) at the western girls. either way your best bet is to walk in the street and ignore the onslaught of horn-honking honda dreams.