Hey, everyone! I have spent the last few days in both Hội An & Đà Lạt. Hội An at nighttime was lovely, with lanterns reflecting along the river. And Đà Lạt, while I wasn’t expecting much, has been quite surprising – with lively night markets, alpine coasters, hot air balloons, waterfalls, and even a surprising snake sighting.

A few housekeeping things:

1) If you’re interested in my art, have a look at my merchandise on RedBubble!
2) If wanting to read my first novel, Eclipse Me, you can find the link here.

Hội An

After arriving in Hội An, I went out to get some custom shirts tailored. Hội An is pretty iconic for this – affordable custom shirts made out of whichever fabric you choose. Because it sometimes can take a few days, I decided to go right away. I stopped at one store but didn’t care for the fabrics. I then went to another one that someone on Reddit suggested and that had some more material to my liking. The shopkeepers were very kind but a little too eager. I think I got swept up in all the excitement and somehow I ended up walking away having paid for four shirts. I definitely need to learn to ONLY buy clothing which I am in 100% love with. I like them all but I’m not necessarily in love. However, they did a lovely job and I definitely recommend Trung Duc if visiting in Hội An. Just be sure you’re in love with the materials and patterns first!

That first afternoon, I didn’t do much of anything. It was raining a lot and there was talk that another typhoon was coming through. I spent much of the afternoon writing the last blog post. In the evening, I went for dinner and a short walk around town.

Luckily, the typhoon faded out into a tropical storm and other than some bursts of rain, I didn’t end up being too affected in Hội An. PHEW!

Old Town

I enjoyed a lazy, rainy morning the next day. In the early afternoon, I went to pick up my shirts. They did a really nice job! I then went for a walk into Old Town.

Old Town is a historical part of Hội An, known for having a unique blend of Japanese, Chinese, and Vietnamese culture. And it was also incredibly oversaturated with tourists. WE WERE EVERYWHERE! I was already pre-warned that Hội An can feel a bit “touristy” so I was mentally prepared. Despite the hordes of tourists, the Old Town did certainly have a charm to it. I also was prepared for pushy shopkeepers but in my opinion, they were much better than those in Bali. Plus, having headphones on helps big time in those situations.

Many of the buildings in Old Town were painted a vibrant yellow. Lots of storefronts, goods to be purchased, etc. There were even some historical buildings that could be walked through… for a price! I ended up not buying tickets. I’m trying not to push myself to do everything, see everything. As mentioned in recent posts, I’ve been feeling a little burnt out – mostly from scenery, but also I guess the relentlessness of constant travel. I’ve slowed down more recently, prioritized what I want to see and what I don’t. It’s feeling much better. It’s okay not to see or pay for every attraction!

I really loved the architecture of the Ba Mu temple gate, right at the edge of Old Town. Apparently, it used to be the gateway between two temples. The temples are no longer standing – digging online, it says the complex was “destroyed over centuries by fire and war.”

Another iconic structure in Old Town was the Japanese Covered Bridge. It was built in the late 16th century. Very cool – both at day and night. Again, lots of people in this area.

After walking around some, I decided I would stop back at my accommodation and return to Old Town in the evening. I am glad I did because nighttime is when it really came alive in a special way. Crowded? 100%. But worth it. Speaking of the crowds, I found it pretty amusing that probably 90% of the tourists were all obviously in custom tailored shirts.. just like me!

At the edge of Old Town, a bridge crosses over into an island popular for its night market and bars. Almost all of the storefronts were decorated in lanterns but what really blew me away was seeing that, on the river, there were heaps of canoes adorned in lanterns.

People were able to pay for a canoe ride along the river. It made for a really beautiful nighttime scene.

I grabbed dinner then continued to walk along the river, admiring and snapping photos of the numerous lantern-lit canoes along the way. I was tickled to also see “flower lanterns” in the water. I’ve always wanted to see a river filled with flower lanterns. While this river wasn’t filled with them, I spotted maybe a dozen or so. Cute!

If I associate Hội An with any one thing moving forward… it would be lanterns. They had lantern-making classes, lanterns decorating shopfronts, lanterns hanging across the road. They were everywhere! It makes for a dreamy, photogenic stroll through town.

Once I’d walked around for a while, I returned back to my accommodation. I ended up extending another night.

The next day, I hired a bicycle from my accommodation and went for a ride. My main goal was to get to a lighthouse about 40min outside of town. I hadn’t even looked up a photo of the lighthouse but because of its location next to the ocean, I envisioned a tall lighthouse on a cliff. Well, it ended up not being that at all LOL. It wasn’t even right at the water’s edge. I was so unimpressed, I didn’t even take a photo and just turned back around haha. However, the waves were ferocious that day and it was cool to see them crash onto shore. Sea foam was flying around in the wind and waves were spitting over the fence and onto the sidewalk.

I also saw one of the cutest sights, which was a farmer sitting cross-legged on the back of a water buffalo. I wish I’d been able to snap a photo, it was so dear.

I then returned back to my accommodation. The second I did, it started pouring rain. I swear, I have been getting really lucky with rain lately. Does it rain? Yes. But it always seems to start as soon as I FINISH whatever outdoor activity I was doing.

Hội An to Đà Lạt

When I returned from my bike ride, I had to weigh my options. Would I stay in Hội An another night, check out in the morning and somehow keep busy until the evening, where I would then take an overnight bus to Đà Lạt?

To be honest, while Hội An was lovely, it was rather small and I felt I’d done the things I had set out to do. I decided to check out that afternoon and take the bus to Đà Lạt. The thing that was tricky about this bus route was that very few of them leave in the morning. Ideally, I would have checked out the following morning, hopped on a bus, and then arrived at my accommodation in Đà Lạt. But the morning busses are double the price and arrive in the middle of the night. At least with the overnight busses, I would arrive during daylight.

So I had a chill afternoon in Hội An, grabbed an early dinner, and around 7.30pm, began the long bus journey from Hội An to Đà Lạt. While I still have two more bus rides after this, Hội An to Đà Lạt was probably the longest bus ride I’ve had to take yet in Vietnam… Thirteen hours. EEK! I kept busy for a while by playing Zelda and watching downloaded shows on my laptop.

Around midnight, I decided to close my eyes and try to sleep. Surprisingly, I ended up sleeping (sort of) until we arrived at Đà Lạt. It was awful sleep because the bus was constantly weaving through mountainous roads and my head was whipping back and forth. However, I did manage to stay mostly asleep the whole time.

Once I got dropped off, I walked 10min in the rain to my accommodation. My booking said early check-in was possible but unfortunately none of the rooms were yet free. I had to wait for the fuckers to check out first. UGH. I was in a slightly exhausted state due to crappy sleep and so I just hung out at the accommodation until noon, when I was finally able to check in. Hey, better than 2pm which is what it was originally slated as. I immediately took a three hour nap which was much needed.

While I could have dropped off my bags and gone exploring… I really couldn’t. I needed to rest before I could do/enjoy anything.

Crazy House

Once I’d woken from my nap, I looked up nearby attractions. One of them was called Crazy House, a 20min walk away. Crazy House is a sort of Dr. Seuss x Tim Burton x Salvador Dali fever dream. After looking it up, apparently it was inspired by Gaudi architecture.

I walked to the structure and after being intrigued by the perimeter, ended up paying the USD$3 to walk the interior.

What’s very cool about the location is that you can even rent bedrooms there! I can’t imagine how much peace and quiet you’d get, with visitors walking around most of the day, but still. I was able to see some of the bedrooms that weren’t occupied and they looked really awesome.

I kept saying to myself while exploring Crazy House, “this is… crazy! This is so crazy!” Uh – YEAH, it’s called Crazy House, Steven!

It felt like a maze. There were so many sets of stairs that would take you up, then back down, connecting building to building. Some stairs led to little alcoves for selfies, others led to a vantage point overlooking the city and mountains off in the distance. Really, it was an awesome experience.

After walking through a seashell-door, I was transported into an underwater world, decorated with mermaids, coral, sharks and more.

There was a spiral staircase of sorts, walls with giant hands, a pond.

In some ways, it felt like a haunted house. Fitting, since it’s almost Halloween! There were even some Halloween decorations set up, but it really wasn’t necessary.

I really loved walking through the area. What a totally random thing and also, what a totally random thing for Vietnam. I never would have expected something like this here in the middle of a mountain town.

Speaking of Đà Lạt being a mountain town – the vibe and fashion of the locals felt so much different than anywhere else in Vietnam I’ve been. Because the climate is cooler, people were in all sorts of cozy, warm fashion. Teddy bear sweaters, fuzzy hats, etc. But CUTE fashion. I think cold climates often offer the best fashion options.

Night Market

As I was walking back from Crazy House, I ended up seeing a hot air balloon in the distance. And then another hot air balloon. What the hell? I went to go explore.

There ended up being some kind of event happening at the square. There must have been 20 or 30 hot air balloons, and two of them were taking people up maybe fifty feet in the air. How fun! I kept chuckling – it was such a bizarre experience. I never expected to see a bunch of hot air balloons in Đà Lạt. That’s part of the fun of travel, you oftentimes will experience completely random, unexpected things.

I ended up seeing a food stall that had “avocado ice cream,” and ordered one immediately. In that moment, I realized I had forgotten to order some in Hội An, which apparently was a Thing to Do. To my surprise, the ice cream was really tasty! And I also learned that it was first was popularized in Đà Lạt, NOT Hội An. Sooooo, it was meant to be, I suppose.

After stopping at the accommodation for chill time, I went to the Night Market in the evening. The one food I wanted to try was a Vietnamese pizza. Many stalls at the market were selling these pizzas so I just picked one at random. The base for the pizza was very thin, it almost looked like a crepe. And then… well, they basically are making a sort of pizza. There was a sauce, some veggies, some meat. And then it’s folded up kind of like a burrito. But let me tell you… YUM. I ended up getting another one later that evening. I also got some bread rolls from another vendor.

I finished a lap around the market and then decided to go check out an interesting structure off in the distance. The tower reminded me of the Eiffel Tower and I wanted to get closer to try and get a photo. Unfortunately, the view next to the tower was obstructed by a massive fence. The tower was a, I guess, telephone power. Tons of power lines joined together and then ran up to the tower. Also, Vinaphone is a cell phone provider, so… yeah. I thought it looked really cool, though! Sort of retro-futurism vibes.

I walked down to the lake and got a (maybe) better photo of the tower reflected in the water. Then I returned to the night market. It was truly so lively. They had street performers painted silver, painted gold. There was someone in a giant Labubu costume, a monster costume, etc. I was also surprised to see a number of blind people asking for change. How many blind folks are there in Đà Lạt? A lot, apparently. I must have seen five that night.

Eventually, I returned to my accommodation to relax.

Datanla

In the morning, I took a grab out to Datanla, an attraction 20min in the mountains outside of Đà Lạt. The main pull for me was seeing a large waterfall but Datanla also is home to a number of other things: ziplining, alpine coasters, and cable cars. To get to the waterfall, you’re required to get there by taking an alpine coaster. And, to be honest, I wasn’t mad about that. I’d always wanted to ride one! The closest I’ve been was the luge in Queenstown.

$10 later, I was zipping down the tracks of the alpine coaster. HOW FUN! It reminded me of my Six Flags / Cedar Point days with Joey and Rob. The track was a mile long and it didn’t feel rushed. I was on there for maybe five minutes? Really fun and enjoyable.

I was pretty impressed by Datanla, to be honest. It did, in some ways, feel like a theme park (“folk” games, coffee shops, souvenir shops, etc.), but the manicuring of the grounds was really well done. The paths leading from one spot to the next were clearly paved, the landscaping was lovely. Bridges felt safe. It was a gorgeous spot, surrounded by nature.

The Datanla waterfall was powerful and definitely worth seeing. I was also able to walk up a path that led to another section of the waterfall – smaller but also enjoyable. Along the path were a number of backdrops and scenic stops for photo-ops.

Off to the side was a wooden sculpture of King Kong where people were taking photos. I decided to hop in line because when would I ever see something like this again? I watched the others taking photos and smirked to myself. They all were trying to look incredibly cutesy… but the idea is to take a photo where a gigantic ape has you clutched in its palm! When it was my turn, I knew I was going to try and look terrified. So, that’s what I did.

After King Kong, I returned back to the main section of the waterfall in order to take the alpine coaster back up to the start. I wish I’d been able to go on it a few more times because it was really fun!

Between the obvious caretaking of the grounds at Datanla, the lovely waterfalls, and the exciting alpine coaster, I felt my $10 was well spent.

I had a chill afternoon and in the evening, I went out for avocado ice cream again – this time at the oldest avocado ice cream shop in Đà Lạt. It was YUM.

I then went and ate a bunch of food at the night market again. While there, a lady asked where I was from. She was American as well, but half Vietnamese and has been living in Vietnam for three years. We ended up chatting for about half an hour which was really nice. And, as happens with travel at times, we didn’t even exchange names.

On the walk home, I was VERY surprised to see a teeny, tiny little snake. WHAT was this guy doing slithering around the roads in the middle of a busy city? I couldn’t believe it. I am waiting to get an ID from a Reddit group but I’m thinking because of its eye placement that it’s some kind of water snake. Obviously, that was a perfect way to wrap up my night in Đà Lạt!

Update: It’s apparently a “bearded snake,” non-venomous. I just found this information online, which I have to share below.

If the Indochinese ratsnake strides around everywhere, arrogantly rearing its chest up to show who’s in charge, then the exact opposite is the bearded snake (Fimbrios klossi). This Vietnamese species is almost never encountered by normal people, and stumbling across one is a very lucky event indeed.

This snake varies from steel grey to grey-blue, and never has any memorable patterns. They have rough-looking scales similarly to the Javan dragon snake further south, and round, innocent pupils.

This is a mysterious, poorly studied snake, but we know just enough details to paint a picture. The bearded snake is an inhabitant of small streams in rainforests, typically at altitudes of 1000-1500 metres. It preys primarily on fish, and has a shy personality. In the obscure forest streams they inhabit, far from humanity, they often hide under fallen leaves, logs and in the water itself.

So far, the bearded snake is known from Vietnam and southeastern Laos. Nevertheless, this is a difficult species to notice, even while walking past, and may be more widespread than currently believed.

To be fair – it was very small and hardly noticeable! Now I feel lucky I got to see it!

Miscellaneous

Guess what all the wi-fi passwords in Vietnam are? Spoiler alert – they’re 12345678.

While I LOVE Vietnam, I am annoyed with the spelling of Ề̄ṽểŕỵţḥîñǵ̛ like this lol. Gotta Google the town names, copy & paste… sigh. This blog is hard work, people!

Reflections

While I’ve been doing things and enjoying myself this past week, I’ve also slowed down and am not pushing myself. Because of that, I do feel I am cleansing my palette. I think it had just been a culmination of things. Moving around a lot, seeing a LOT of beautiful scenery, going on tours and visiting a bunch of attractions. My brain was like “OK, stop. Too much beauty. Too much stimulation. You need some time to just walk around and not go see yet another UNESCO heritage site.” For instance, I skipped out on a “must” in Hội An, the My Son Sanctuary which I’d read was pretty spectacular. But I preferred to have chill time in Hội An. I CANNOT do everything and so I’m not going to even try. Again, it’s about priorities, right?

From Đà Lạt, I have two more stops before leaving Vietnam. The first is Cat Tien National Park, perhaps the #1 place I have been looking forward to visiting… mainly for the chance of wildlife sightings. Elephants? Probably not, but they do exist there. Hornbills, snakes, crocodiles, birds, etc. I will be going on a snake tour there (yay!) and otherwise, just exploring, chilling, and avoiding leeches. I have booked five nights which is longer than many other places I’ve stayed in Vietnam. This will give me time to enjoy nature, but also to slow down.

And after that is the last spot, Ho Chi Minh City!

Until next time, sending you all my love. x