The piney air tousled my hair as I bounced violently around the bus seat that was speeding up the mountain.  I sighed a breath of relief at the familiar mountain smell, which was a welcome change from the salty sea air. French colonial architecture dotted the landscape in pastel colors making me think we’d arrived to a European village. Đà Lạt welcomed us with red strawberries and rich coffee.  If I had to sum up Đà Lạt in one word, I would describe it as dreamy.  

Once the bus dropped us off, we walked to what would be our home for the next week.  Meandering through alleyways and greenhouses, we found The Balcony (AirBnb) awaiting us.  This French Villa was stunning, and the interior design was equally as beautiful.  Our hostess, My, was extremely sweet and we would return just to see her again.  We had many conversations through her iPad google translate, which is really incredible.  It’s really surreal to be able to understand and to be understood through a tiny device- something that would have never been possible in the past.  The Balcony is located about 3 miles from downtown Đà Lạt, but we found that we loved the walk.  I would absolutely recommend anyone going to Đà Lạt to stay at The Balcony, and I hope we are able to return someday.

Places to eat:

Leo’s Kitchen

After eating at Tiny’s Farm, we’d head to Leo’s to do some work and figure out the day.  This cafe is so adorable and has the most delicious beverages.  I switched between various matcha drinks while Sam had a Summer smoothie every day.  The young people who worked there were so sweet, and even gave us free desserts whenever we stopped by, which was every day.  The matcha drinks were $1.32 and Sam’s smoothie was $1.54.  If you’re in Đà Lạt, you must go here.

Tiny’s Farm

You may remember how much Sam and I love Xoi Ga, chicken with sticky rice, so we were extremely excited to find that this cute cafe just a few blocks from The Balcony serves amazing xoi ga.  Every morning we’d walk down the hill to Tiny’s Farm, and order two xoi ga’s with two cà phê sữa đás, which is vietnamese iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk.  Xoi ga’s were $1.10 each and the coffees were .66¢ each.  So good.

An Cafe

We came here after I saw it mentioned on Instagram a lot, and we were not disappointed.  It is very trendy, with lettuce plants everywhere and open air seating.  It sits almost on a cliffside, and the matcha latte was delicious and not too sugary.  It’s an organic cafe, which is cool, but increases the prices a bit.  The matcha latte was about $2.00 and the smoothies were the same.  I would come again just for the atmosphere.

Oz Burgers

I read about this burger joint on many travel blogs, so we decided to splurge on it.  The burgers were so good, and actually tasted pretty American.  Two burgers and fries ran us about $11.00 which is a lot for one meal in this area.  However, it was so worth it.  We hadn’t had a halfway decent burger in god knows how long, so this was the perfect treat.

Lien Hoa

This bakery was so good.  Full of scrumptious baked goods, and even had a restaurant upstairs.  Chau Nguyen and Al Pendergrass (friends from Livingston, MT who just happened to be here at the same time as us!) showed us this place, and we couldn’t stop eating here.  There was even a much smaller location right near The Balcony so we found ourselves eating pork buns and pastries for breakfast and lunch most mornings.  The pork buns were .66¢ each, and most pastries ranged from .30¢ to .66¢.  

Things to do:

Market: Nguyen The Minh Khao Street

This market is so huge and feels like it never ends.  It is so easy to get lost amongst all of the teas, food, flowers, plants, coats, clothing, and even shoes.  Three stories high, and absolutely packed full of goodies.  Sam found a great raincoat that claims to be a NorthFace, for around $4.40 and it has proved itself durable in the rainy weather.  I bought a tee shirt that I can’t seem to stop wearing for $3.52.  Definitely worth a visit, even if some of the shopkeepers aren’t all that nice (one lady told us that one jacket was worth 3 million dong, equivalent to $132.00 just to get us to leave).   

Linh Phuoc Pagoda

This pagoda is stunning.  It was hands down my favorite sight in Đà Lạt.  It is covered in intricate mosaic designs and had a giant buddha statue made of only flowers, it was an incredible masterpiece.  There was no entrance fee, and the lady who kept an eye on the tourists was very sweet.  Sam wrote a prayer on the pieces of paper that are given to the guests, and you are able to paste it onto a giant bell and hit it with a huge gong.  There was a really weird haunted house thing in the basement though, like a maze full of scary devil-like statues and creepy music- I would skip that if you’re easily frightened like me.  The pagoda is definitely a “do not miss” in Đà Lạt.

Crazy House

Well, this place was certainly crazy.  Crazy weird. There is an entrance fee of $2.20 per person, and I’m not entirely certain it was worth it.  Sam called it an “Alice in wonderland acid trip gone wrong” and I agree.  Wikipedia does a better job describing than I could.

Gondola to Truc Lam Temple

We got a little mixed up and accidentally took a taxi to the Truc Lam Temple and just took the gondola down, but it was still a great time.  It’s a beautiful monastery with gorgeous flowers and incense burning throughout the grounds.  The sounds of gongs could be heard ringing creating a very peaceful atmosphere.  I’m starting to understand the appeal of buddhism just by the feeling I got walking around here.  We hopped on the cable car down the mountain which was $2.64 each (one way).  

Flower Garden

We heard mixed reviews about the Flower Garden, but decided to go.  I thought it was gorgeous with beautiful flowers and fountains everywhere.  There were some creepy looking dwarf statues, but they were more funny than anything.  We saw a kitten stuck in a tree, but couldn’t get him down with the watchful mama cat looking like she’d strike at any moment.  If you’re looking for an informational tour of flowers, this is not the place to go.  There aren’t any descriptions of the flowers, they’re just pretty to admire and take photos of.  The entrance fee is $1.32 per person.

Honestly, Đà Lạt was one of my favorite places we’ve been to in Southeast Asia.  It was an oasis after a rough time in Vung Tau and Mui Ne.  And it was really hard to leave.  The beautiful flowers, bonsai trees, lush greenery, and French architecture made me fall in love.