Stopping for a break at a waterfall on the way to Dalat from Nha Trang.

On the ride to Dalat

On the ride to Dalat.

Our rugged crew 🙂

weasel poo coffee. No joke.

Ted running wild

At day 3 in Dalat, I admit the city is growing on me. Coming to Dalat, Ted and I had envisioned a peaceful mountain town with lots of outdoorsy stuff to do. Wrong! Picture a city with streets like a labyrinth filled with roundabouts and a bunch of horn happy mopeds. It was hard to find anything and hard not to feel in the way no matter where we stood, parked, or stopped. But after a few days (and thanks to google earth) we managed to navigate our way around and (thankfully) out of the city, which made it worth it.
Today we splurged on a mountain bike trip with Viet Challenge Tours and had a great time and some much appreciated peace and quiet outside the city. Our guide, “Smoker,” took Ted and I plus a British dude on some little dirt roads and the occasional single track through the pine tree forest that surrounds Dalat. He was very informative about local legends and history (between cigarettes) and we had a great time, stopping at some random animal sculptures, a flower garden, and a coffee and tea shop where we had the pleasure of trying the famous weasel coffee, which is basically coffee made from weasel turds. Seriously.
Tomorrow we head back for Mui Ne, and I will be stoked to be back in a smaller town with more of a mellow vibe. My advice for anyone thinking about going to Dalat would be: DON’T go on a weekend; make sure you have google earth (or a local friend), and get out of the city. It is a beautiful area, you just have to make an effort to see it.