In the Land of Coffee! - Dalat, Vietnam

March 15, 2010

Today we wanted to explore the countryside near Dalat; so we rented a motorbike for 50,000 VD and filled up the tank with 60,000 VD of gas and headed out for the day. It has been our cheapest motorbike yet, at only $2.50 for the entire day.

We first started to head north, hoping we might be able to get to Dak Lak Province, which is the largest coffee producing region in Vietnam. However, after we got about 25-30 km north of Dalat, the road we were traveling on turned from pavement to gravel and some of the locals we talked to said that the road continued to be gravel for about the next 20 km. So we decided to fore go the rocky road and instead turned around and headed back to Dalat City.

Although we didn't get to the main coffee producing region of Dak Lak, which grows about 60% of the exported coffee from Vietnam, we did see several hillsides full of coffee trees. We also learned a few things about coffee production today and it was interesting to see the trees along the side of the road. There wasn't much action happening on these plantations because the harvest time is normally in late December in Vietnam and a lot of the work happens shortly after that time period. But here is some fun Vietnamese coffee trivia for you!

*The coffee bean is actually the seed of the coffee cherry, which grows on a tree
*It takes about 3-4 years before the tree starts to bear fruit
*Most of the cherries from the tree are picked by hand
*Once the coffee cherries are picked it has be to processed immediately in order to avoid spoilage -- it is processed by either a dry or wet method.
*The Beans must be dried, hulled and milled and are then called 'green coffee.' Soon after the green coffee is exported.
*The roasting of the beans does not happen until the beans reach the imported country. The roasting happens here because it is best to get the roasted beans as quickly as possible to consumers. Roasting is also what gives the coffee the rich aroma.

*Vietnam is the 2nd largest coffee exporting country behind Brazil
*The popular brand of coffee in Vietnam is Trung Nguyen, and this company alone averages 6 million cups of coffee everyday around the world. It is also controls a third of instant coffee market.
*Trung Nguyen, dominated its home country's coffee market in just four years; Starbucks took 15 years! It is now trying to expand more in the US, France, Singapore and Japan.
*Coffee appreciates up to 40 times just between the farm to the supermarket, and most of that added value goes to the traders. So there has been a focus on helping Vietnamese coffee growers get more value for their crop and also to grow a better quality crop so they can compete in top international markets.

Alex and his beloved coffee...
The coffee cherries on the tree:
When you open the coffee cherries, the seeds are inside and these seeds are what is actually made into the coffee bean that we grind and drink for coffee. These seeds are just what it looks like before the drying and the roasting processes. While we were back in Dalat City, we grabbed some lunch from the local sandwich lady -- Alex had cheese and vegetables in a baguette and Kristin had egg and vegetables in the baguette for only 8,000 VD per sandwich -- less than $.50.

After lunch we headed south of the city and stopped at Prenn Waterfall and continued to the valley areas where many of the flowers and vegetables of the area are grown. There are many flowers grown in nurseries that are sold at the markets and some of them are even sold as transplanted varieties. When we arrived back in Dalat in the late afternoon, we went to the large market in the town centre and did some shopping. Most of the stalls inside are full of vendors who sell their products by weight -- they had everything from tea leaves, coffee beans and dried fruits and candies that you could purchase by the 100 gram amount. It was a binning sensation!! We came away with some local coffee beans, dried kiwis and dried strawberries that made for a great treat in the evening!

The weather has been great here and in the mornings and evenings it gets almost chilly because we are up in the mountains. However, I can see how this has been a top travel destination for local Vietnamese. The region also produces its own variety of wine, so Kristin is hoping we might check that out before catching the bus to Ho Chi Minh, where it will be back to the heat and humidity.

PHOTOS FROM AROUND DALAT:

When we arrived at the Dalat Airport there were still Christmas decorations up -- It's mid-March! However, in Southeast Asia Christmas decorations seem to be synomous with Chinese New Year (or Tet in Vietnam) since Christmas is not a major holiday here. So since Tet just finished at the end of Feb. maybe that's why the decorations are still up????

Our first coffee in Vietnam's coffee producting region and it was only 7,000 VD (less than $.50) per glass of iced coffee!

View from the balcony of our hostel room as the sun is setting.

Views from our road trip north of Dalat:

Prenn Waterfall - but a little weak because it is the dry season here.

Some of the coffee trees grown along the side of the mountain. There were various vegetable and flower gardens and greenhouses around the Dalat area that required constant up-keep by the workers.

The Lotus Flower, which is the Vietnam National Flower. It is used as decorations and can be eaten and added to soups and dishes. When dried it can be used as a decoration.

Dalat had some of the nicest houses we've seen in Vietnam and most of SE Asia: