On the 7th we headed out on a bus to Dalat, which is in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. The bus left at 1230 and took about 7 hours, the last 2 of which were a constant climb and involved the air conditioning being turned off - not happy. Dalat is in the southern part of the Truong Son Mountain Range and is very popular with Vietnamese honeymooners, being dotted with lakes, waterfalls and surrounded by evergreen forests. The town it at 1475m and as such is the only cool(ish) place I have so far visited, although strange looks abounded as I wandered around in shorts and the locals donned woolly hats and gloves! We checked in to the Peace Hotel, which had a room for 3 for less than 5 pounds and then headed next door to the very nice Art Cafe for dinner. The next day we decided to have a bit of a lie in and then hired motorcycles to tour the town and area. Strangely, they could not locate a helmet to fit me, a bit embarrassing, but sorted eventually and off we went. First task of the day, to find somewhere for breakfast. Now, to me, a cafe generally sells at least a modicum of food, albeit biscuits or the like, but oh no, not here. Vile treacle like black Vietnamee coffee only - or if you feel so inclined it can be sweetened with sweet milk, which is revolting. So after stopping at a few so called "cafes", we gave up and went back to the Art Cafe. Fully fuelled (us and the bikes) we headed off to the Cam Ly Falls, which is also noted for it's circus-style ambience - ie tackiness. Alas, it was not to be - closed due to lack of water (quite useful for a waterfall) and the resultant smell. Next stop, the Lam Ty Ni Pagoda, which in itself is less famous than Mr Thuc, the Crazy Monk who lives here. Maria visited him 9 years ago and for those of you who have asked me what the picture on my lounge wall is - this is the man who painted it. Maria had it framed for me and Robin as a wedding present, so it was nice to meet the eccentric artist. I don't think Rob ever really liked it, so declined buying him a matching one. From the Crazy Monk, to the Crazy House (no connection), which is also a hotel. I can think of one word to describe the designer, barking. It has also seen better days and is in need of a good clean and lick of paint. See what you think from the pictures. We then had to get the bikes back for 1800 as the town centre is pedestrianised on Saturdays and Sundays in the evening. Ventured further afield in search of food, only to be sorely disappointed and returning to, you guessed it, the Art Cafe. From here to Saigon Nights, a dingy little bar with a fantastic atmosphere. After playing Connect Four, we moved on to pool and played with On (Israeli) and Chris and Neil (Aussies). The girls team was on fire and Maria and I certainly held our own - maybe the beer helped. Maria and Alan also presented me with a leaving present - a bottle of salad cream and those of you who know me will know how appreciated this will be. Very late to bed and so therefore another lie in required, followed by vast quantities of food to ease aching heads. We got back on the bikes and went to the Thuy Ta Restaurant, overlooking the lake for brunch, although by now it was 1400. The food was reasonable, but I have never seen so much garlic in my life, I was actually scraping it from my food. Even the advent of salad cream could not temper the taste of garlic, still at least the three of us were equally as stinking. Now for some more touristy bits and the Flower Gardens - closed - not having much luck. Followed by the Valley of Love, which is quite beautiful, but spoilt by the kitsch, naff photo opportunities available. Locals dressed as cowboys, love seats, giant swan boats - I think you've got the idea. We dropped the bikes off at the hotel and wandered down to the local market to look at the tourist tatt and local produce, as well as coats, hats and gloves. We tried some of the local mulberry sweets, very good, before getting on the back of taxi bikes to the posh 5 star Sofitel for our last supper. We went to Larry's Bar at the Sofitel and played chess, pool, darts and Jenga all at the same time, before taxi-ing back to Saigon Nites for a final farewell drink. Today (9th) I had to pack (see photograph) and get to the airport somehow. Insane people that we are, we decided to motorbike it, which involved Alan plus backpack on one bike and me and Maria on the other, the poor little bike did not know what had hit it! On the way out of town we stopped at the V Cafe, which actually served food and the most delectable French toast with bacon and maple syrup. Then for the 30km ride to the airport, which was down a track. Waved to Maria and Alan from the plane and 45 minutes later was back in the sweltering humidity of HCMC. First priority, to try on the clothes that I am having made and lovely they are too. I pick them up tomorrow en-route to the airport to fly to Singapore for a couple of days, before flying onwards to Perth. Shes xxx - ps the s key not working too well on this keyboard so apologies for any errors.