We'll Always Have Paris.

And Dalat, the final stop on our farewell tour, which is known as "The Paris of Vietnam."

Probably because of this.

Otherwise the place is not so Parisian, but at 4000 feet it was
a welcome change in climate from the intense heat of the coast.
We flew in to Cam Rahn Bay in the morning from Da Nang,
and then were driven three hours into the mountains to the old
French hill station of Dalat. The town was founded in the late 1800s
by Europeans looking for relief from the constant heat of Saigon.
While we were there, the temperature was in the mid-seventies
by day and high sixties at night--pretty much ideal.

Because of the idyllic climate and the many hundreds of greenhouses
surrounding the town, Dalat has become the flower capital of Vietnam.
Almost all the flowers sold in the rest of the country come from here.

Including these elaborate arrangements seen at weddings,
funerals, and grand openings.

The produce is plentiful as well. It was blackberry season, and the
streets were awash with the purple juice.

Plenty of poultry, too.

The center of this picturesque town is a dazzling mountain lake,
unfortunately recently drained due to construction work.

We were told that it would be refilled by the summer of 2011,
but in the meantime the stranded pedal swans stare forlornly
at the empty lakefront restaurants.

As we wandered the hilly streets, reveling in the cool, fresh mountain air,
we discovered this huge, busy Catholic church.

And an interesting addition to the usual Christian iconography.
(See the top of the cross.)

Locals watch the lakefront construction from any vantage point available.

We had been promised a BBQ dinner for our first night at our hotel.
We did not expect BBQ chicken feet.
Rather a disappointment.

P.