Where in Nha Trang you can ride elephants. We ride wild elephants in Dak Lak province, Vietnam. Ride elephants at an elephant nursery
Vietnam is home to elephants of the Asian elephant species (lat. Elephas maximus) of the Elephantidae family (lat. Elephantidae). This is the largest animal in Asia. On Earth, they are larger in size than the Savannah Elephant and Forest Elephant species that live in Africa.
In total, the Asian elephant species has 4 subspecies: Indian, Sri Lankan, Sumatran, Bornean. Some scientists tend to consider elephants from Vietnam and Laos a separate, fifth subspecies.
Elephant for tourists in Dalat city
Elephants are considered animals with a high level of intelligence. They recognize themselves in the mirror, use some objects as primitive tools, and have a good memory.
There are very few elephants left in Vietnam. If at the beginning of the 80s of the 20th century there were about two thousand of them throughout the country, then by 2010 there were just over a hundred individuals living in ten herds.
The distribution range of elephants in Vietnam was wide: from the borders with China in the north almost to Ho Chi Minh City in the south. Now the range has split into pockets of habitat.
Wild elephants
Vietnamese elephants live in subtropical and tropical forests (jungles). They prefer light-colored forests with a dense undergrowth of shrubs and bamboo. Herds of wild elephants remained in remote provinces: in the northwest in Lai Chau and Dien Bien, in the central highlands in Dak Lak, Lam Dong, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum. The small herd lives in the mountainous part of Binh Thuan province, where the popular seaside resort Mui Ne. Scientists believe that wild elephants in the jungles of Vietnam will continue to decline and will finally disappear by 2021.
Farmers' fields are constantly conquering new areas from the jungle. Elephants are becoming more aggressive because their opportunities for obtaining food are narrowing and attacks on them by poachers are becoming more frequent. In response, elephants sometimes enter farmers' fields and trample down crops. Those individuals that are in captivity and used in various fields human activity, also often show aggression. In 2007, in the province of Dak Lak, an elephant trampled to death an approaching tourist who was trying to pass a camera to his friend who was sitting on the elephant.
In addition to tusks, poachers hunt elephants because of the belief that jewelry made from elephant tail hair brings good luck.
Domesticated elephants
In previous years, domesticated elephants were used economically in Vietnam in the same way as in other countries: for timber harvesting and for transporting heavy loads. Currently - only in the field of tourism and entertainment.
In the Vietnamese army, elephants were a fighting weapon for many centuries. In the 15th century, they helped the Vietnamese army repel the Mongol invasion. The last use of elephants was during the Vietnam War, and by both warring parties - northerners and southerners. The northerners transported military cargo on them, and the southerners carried out patrols in the jungle. This was probably the last use of elephants in warfare in all of history.
The closest place to popular resorts where tourists can see and ride elephants is the city of Dalat. These elephants are, of course, in captivity. They are intensively exploited, so the animals quickly become exhausted and die. In captivity they do not leave offspring because they only need distant ones for mating. deserted places. Due to its large mass, an elephant requires 300 kg of grass and several hundred liters of water per day for food. In jungle conditions, elephants can find so much food for themselves. And the mahouts who exploit elephants for tourists cannot provide the animals with sufficient and nutritious food. Elephants need plant foods from the jungle that they have consumed for millions of years. It contains more necessary biological substances and microelements for them than the gruel that their owners feed them.
In the province of Dak Lak, an elephant festival is held once every two years, during which elephant races, elephant football games and other attractions are held. At other times, they simply take tourists for rides, and over long distances.
Since about 2000, in mountainous area in southern and central Vietnam, many families began keeping elephants in their households more than in previous years. This is predominantly done by representatives of national minorities living in this region. Many families have 5-10 elephants on their farm. Elephants are loyal to people. As a rule, they recognize the supremacy of man.
Occasionally, tamed elephants have offspring. The owners release a pair of elephants into the jungle for 1-2 months to have offspring. After all, during pregnancy, a female should not kneel down in order for cargo or passengers to be loaded onto her back. After giving birth, it cannot be used intensively for 3-5 years. At the same time, they are trying to squeeze maximum profit out of elephants. For example, a tourist pays $25-30 for one hour of skiing. Therefore, only a few owners even temporarily release their elephants into the wild for mating.
Dak Lak (Vietnam) is not visited by too many tourists, since this province is located quite far from popular resorts countries. For example, from Nha Trang the bus ride will take approximately five hours. Meanwhile, there is not just a lot of interesting things in Dak Lak, this province is very different from tourist resorts with good infrastructure. You could say that in Dak Lak you will see a “different” Vietnam.
Locals
In Dak Lak, in addition to the main nation of Vietnam, the Viets, there are many other nationalities living: Mnong, Tho, Ede and others. They have their own culture, language, many live in tribes, using the benefits of civilization to a minimum. True, it is worth saying that many residents in the villages of Daklak do this not only due to personal beliefs, but also because of poverty. They live in panel houses, cultivate the land and, of course, entertain tourists.
And tourists are offered here to visit one of the villages in Daklak, where they can look at local life and even chat with the residents. This is usually combined with evening performances in ethnic style. Local residents sing songs, dance, organize games, treat tourists with home-cooked dishes and an original alcoholic drink - rice wine.
Elephant ride
Dak Lak province is famous for its large number of domesticated elephants, which are actively used both in households (for example, in cultivating fields) and in tourist performances. Basically, the Mnongs are engaged in taming elephants; the name of the people is translated as “elephant catchers”. They actually capture adult elephants, rather than raising captive-born elephants and domesticating them.
Tourists are offered not only traditional riding on these large animals, but also swimming on elephants along the river. After all, they swim great! You can also feed the elephants, most often you will have to buy fruit for this. This is also one of the ways local residents earn money.
National parks and lakes
The principles of life of local residents, not spoiled by civilization, have a very good effect on local nature. There are amazing landscapes here! Forests are not being cut down en masse, so large areas of jungle can be found. And among them are neat rice, coffee and tea plantations. Dak Lak is especially famous for growing coffee. It's worth trying the local drink and buying some to take home.
Tourists are invited to visit:
- national parks Yok Dong, Chu Young Sin,
- numerous waterfalls,
- lakes Lak, Dak, Mil,
- Dak Tuar cave.
In all these places, tourists will find pristine natural beauty, unspoilt by production and residential developments. Excursions to the lakes also offer rides on original boats. Most of them are made of wood and are operated by local girls with a single oar.
How to get to Dak Lak province?
Some travelers come to Dak Lak on their own; you can get here by bike, bus, or plane. But still the most convenient way will be organized excursion, because there is a lot to see, but you still need to get to interesting places.
A standard trip from the tourist office will take two days. First, tourists are taken by bus to one of the hotels located in administrative center province - Buon Ma Thuot. There, by the way, you can go to a very interesting ethnographic museum. And then, over two days, tourists are taken to the main attractions: to national parks, to lakes and waterfalls, to villages for evening ethnic performances and elephant rides.
For most tourists, the excursion to Dak Lak is simply amazing. Still: so many impressions in a couple of days! Prepare yourself for a long journey and prepare comfortable clothes and shoes. And be sure to go on an interesting trip to Dak Lak!
Which excursions are worth going on and which are not. Which trips to buy from travel agencies, and which excursions are better to go on on your own. Prices, instructions, photos and reviews - today on the blog.
Excursions in Nha Trang can be divided into several types:
Boat excursions around the islands (Northern Islands, Southern Islands),
Excursions to remote beaches outside the city (Zoklet, Cam Ranh, etc.),
Excursions to waterfalls and hot springs (Yang Bay, Bajo waterfalls),
Excursions to provinces neighboring Nha Trang ( mountain city Da Lat, Dak Lak Elephant Hunter Province)
Long trips (Ho Chi Minh City, Hoi An, Ha Long, Cambodia)
Excursions to SPA and entertainment centers(Vinpearl, Thap Ba mud baths, I-resort and 100 Egg Mud Bath)
Vietnamese or Russian travel agencies: who to choose
Let's first figure out who offers excursions in Nha Trang. All travel agencies here can be divided into two categories:
1. Vietnamese agencies. Available in almost every mini-hotel and on any tourist street in Nha Trang. They offer basic excursions around the city, sea tours at minimal prices.
2. Foreign (including Russian) agencies. The same set of basic excursions in Nha Trang, as well as recreational excursions such as river rafting, fishing, trips to neighboring provinces and countries.
As a rule, prices for excursions from local Vietnamese agencies are lower than from Russian-speaking agencies. They will explain this to you best service, feeding, the presence of a Russian-speaking guide and an expanded program. Sometimes this is really true. But it happens that people who bought an excursion for $8 from the Vietnamese and for $25 from Russian agents are put on the same boat, taken to the same islands and fed the same. Therefore, before purchasing an excursion, ask the price and find out all the nuances of the “extended service”. For example, on sea excursions Russian speaking guide It’s not needed at all, so there’s no point in overpaying for it. And on some excursions you can even go on your own - by bus or by renting a bike.
It is worth buying long-distance excursions from Russian agencies that are not organized by the Vietnamese. These are trips to Dalat and Dak Lak. This is where a Russian-speaking guide will really come in handy.
What excursions should you not go on in Nha Trang:
First of all, from the many options, let’s note those that are not worth considering at all.
Sightseeing tour of Nha Trang
Cost from 20 to 50 dollars per person. Excursion time is 3-5 hours.
A completely pointless waste of time and money. Usually the excursion costs from 20 to 50 dollars per person and includes a trip to the White Buddha statue, Po Nagar Tower and Long Son Pagoda. You can get there by taxi for a couple of dollars or by bus, see everything calmly, without haste, spending as much time as you want. And besides, saving a lot of money. is in a separate post.
Nha Trang Catholic Cathedral, a visit to which is also included sightseeing tour, is located in the city center. You can easily reach it on foot from almost anywhere in the city.
A sightseeing tour sometimes includes visits to shops and factories, promising you the most low prices in the area. But why pay so much money just to be taken shopping?
Excursion from Nha Trang to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Cost from $50 + $20 bus tickets. Excursion time is 36-48 hours.
Very tiring bus tour, which is absolutely not worth the time and money spent. You will be offered to go to Ho Chi Minh City by (slipper bus), then you will be taken by bus all day around the city and the surrounding area, and in the evening you will go back to Nha Trang by sleeper bus. Yes, Ho Chi Minh City beautiful city. It's definitely worth a visit. But not with one day excursion"gallop across Europe" format. Perhaps you will like Vietnam so much that you will want to return here and next time you fly to. Then you will need my city guide, who will help you organize your own excursion.
The same advice applies to distant destinations and Ha Long Bay. Better go there yourself during your next vacation, arranging a tour for yourself.
Dalat for 1 day
The cost of the excursion is from $29. Duration - 13-14 hours.
Dalat - amazing town in the mountains, located about 4-5 hours drive from Nha Trang. Very beautiful, intimate and with a great variety of attractions. You definitely need to go to Dalat, not just for one day, but for at least two!
Diving in Nha Trang
Cost 60-100 dollars per person. Duration - 7-8 hours.
Diving in the Nha Trang area is not a serious activity at all. Especially for certified divers. There are dozens of places in the world where diving is much more interesting than in the South China Sea off the coast of Nha Trang. Don't waste your money and time.
Which excursions in Nha Trang are best purchased from a travel agency:
Dalat for 2 days
The cost is $70 per person. Duration - 36 hours.
If you don't drive a bike and aren't good at... independent organization excursions, buy in Nha Trang two day trip to Dalat at a travel agency. In two days you will see several waterfalls, the famous Madhouse, of extraordinary beauty buddhist temple Chuk Lam on the mountain, take a ride on the cable car and visit several other interesting places. And how beautiful Dalat is at sunset!
We ourselves organized our trip to Dalat and went there by regular regular bus. Read how it happened and how much money we spent in separate posts.
Northern Islands (Nha Phu Bay)
Cost $19-24. The duration of the excursion is 6-7 hours.
Islands of monkeys, deer and orchids north of Nha Trang. An interesting boat trip that is worth going on. During the excursion you will be able to feed the monkeys, ride ostriches and elephants.
Excursion to northern islands You can organize it yourself if you drive a bike. This excursion cost us $30 for three. Visit monkey island Can be combined with a trip. Here's a post about how it happened:
Southern Islands
Cost - $8. Duration 7-8 hours.
Sea excursion, which Vietnamese agencies costs $8. Includes a trip to the Tri Nguyen Island Aquarium and beach holiday on several islands south of Nha Trang. A simple, unpretentious excursion for which you don’t have to pay a lot of money.
But I would recommend buying a two-day ready-made tour from an agency. It costs almost the same as independent travel, only you will have a permanent guide and your own transport. Prices start at $70 per person. We spent $175 for three days on a three-day trip to Daklak for three (Arina was 2.5 years old). IN organized tour They take you to two more waterfalls, where we didn’t get to.
What excursions should you organize yourself:
If you drive a scooter, you don’t have to use the services of travel agencies at all, but visit all interesting places on your own, just like we did. You'll save a ton of money and won't have to rely on a large group of people to be your excursion companions. Renting a bike in Nha Trang costs 5-6 dollars per day. You will spend the same amount on gasoline if you are going somewhere far outside the city.
If you don't drive a bike, then learn. Most attractions are easily accessible by bus.
In this post I will give only a short list of excursions in Nha Trang and their real cost - if you organize them yourself. Compare this with what the agencies offer you.
Long Son Pagoda and White Buddha
Admission is free. Bus ride $0.6 round trip.
You can go by buses No. 1, 2, 6 for $0.3 or by taxi for 2-3 dollars one way.
A beautiful Buddhist temple with a white Buddha statue on the mountain.
Cham Towers of Po Nagar
Admission costs $1. Bus ride $0.6 round trip.
You can get there by bus number 6.
The famous ancient Cham towers, which are more than a thousand years old. The mountain where the towers are built offers an amazing view of Nha Trang.
Zoclet Beach
Bus travel is $2.50 round trip.
An excursion to Zoklet at a travel agency costs from $20 per person.
White fine sand, azure sea... Zoklet beach is a paradise 50 km from Nha Trang. Of course, it’s worth visiting, but don’t rush to pay $20 per person for an excursion. Bus No. 3 goes to Zoklet Beach from Nha Trang. The bus route map shows all stops in Nha Trang. The fare costs a little more than one dollar one way and takes about an hour and a half. In Vietnamese the beach is called Doc Let.
Important information:
There are two routes No. 3. With a white number on a city bus, it travels within Nha Trang. And the same number 3 with a yellow number on the windshield goes to Zoklet beach.
Island and entertainment complex Vinpearl
Admission is $30 per adult and $25 per child. Bus ticket - $0.6 round trip.
This place is simply a must visit. Leads to the island cable car more than three kilometers long. Vinpearl has a water park, an aquarium, an amusement park and many amazing attractions. If you don't have much time in Nha Trang, then go to Vinpearl first.
It’s cheaper to buy tickets in advance on the official Vinpearl website.
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You can book an excursion to the island at any travel agency in Nha Trang, fortunately, there are many of them here. Its cost is about 18 - 25 dollars: this is a trip to two islands at once (monkeys and orchids).
A ticket for a boat taking tourists to Orchid Island is 150,000 VND for adults and 75,000 for children. Boats depart only in the morning: approximately at 8:30 and 9:30. Boats leave every half hour.
Photos with animals - 20,000 dong. Elephant ride - 300,000 VND. Add costs for food, drinks, animal feed, souvenirs.
How long will it take to get acquainted with the beauties of the island?
For a leisurely view of all the sights of the Orchid Island, swimming and sunbathing on local beach, as well as traveling to and from the island will take at least half a day. If you take children on a trip, the trip will last the whole day.
Getting to know Orchid Island
While traveling by water to the attraction, you will see floating crab farms where lobsters and shrimp are grown, and crabs are also harvested. Arriving on the island, you find yourself in a colorful world of flowers of various colors and shapes. And these flowers are orchids.
Orchid Island is nature reserve. In it in natural environment Ostriches, elephants, monkeys, deer, parrots, Himalayan bears and other representatives of the fauna live here. The animals living on the island are not timid and are not at all shy about people. They approach tourists and tearfully “beg” for food.
For excursion groups local trainers demonstrate circus performances involving bears and elephants. Ostrich rides are also available. The local “star” - the elephant Lena, is not averse (although no one really asks her) to give you a ride on her trunk. You can take pictures with the animals.
There is a children's playground for little tourists: colorful attractions are made from ordinary tires. This is creative and budget-friendly. Entertainment includes playing paintball. Fans of snorkeling near the coral reefs, which are not far from the beach, have the opportunity to explore underwater world islands.
The Vietnamese also added their own decoration to this corner of Vietnam: stone stairs on the rises, bridges over streams, beautiful fountains, wooden and stone sculptures. Flower beds with green sculptures of animals and cartoon characters look original.
And, of course, orchids are the colorful “pearls” of the island. The varieties are planted in such a way that their flowering can be observed all year round. Tourists can observe blooming orchids at different times of the year.
You can see beautiful little fluttering creatures of nature in the butterfly park, opened here.
From here it is only a few hours' walk to the border with Cambodia. The road trampled by elephants makes a sharp turn so as not to leave Vietnamese territory. Luxurious thickets of bamboo, a typical plant for these places, amaze with their diversity. Here you can find the yellow color of all shades, the delicate green of newly hatched sprouts, and the brown warmth of thick trunks - some of them reach the height of a four-story building. It is difficult to move along the path - everything around is overgrown with dense bushes; its hard spines, like iron claws, scratch mercilessly - our hands ached from these wounds for a long time afterwards.
We cross another of the rivers - at this time they are quite small - and we see a small cemetery. Silent guards are placed along its edges - wooden sculptures in the form of stylized animal figures, in particular an elephant. The sparkling white buffalo skull, which is designed to ward off evil spirits, as well as other symbols, indicates that the place is holy. And several large amphoras dug into the ground, containing offerings for the gods, indicate that people live somewhere nearby - in some vessels we see fresh fruit. And so it is: another ten minutes of travel, and our entire caravan, elephants and people, enters a small village built on stilts - much to the surprise of its inhabitants.
Zyaray is one of the 54 minorities living in Vietnam. For many centuries they have preserved their original way of life intact. They succeed due to the fact that they live in hard to reach places Vietnamese jungle, and all the repeated attempts to “Vietnamize” these tribes that the authorities made ended in failure. Zyarai men are short in stature, their skin color resembles amber. All clothing consists of a loincloth. Women walk around bare-chested. As soon as our expedition entered the territory of the village, local residents They surrounded the unusual guests with curiosity - only the children kept their distance, afraid to approach people of an unprecedented race. This is understandable: the route of our elephant expedition runs through a zone prohibited for foreigners. The Zyarai do not speak Vietnamese, and therefore we need a translator - from local to Vietnamese. We brought it from Pleiku. He quickly talks about something with an elderly man, it seems, the headman of the village.
Then another translator - from Vietnamese into Russian - Vao - tells us: we are welcome in the village. And it confirms what we have already read in the eyes of the inhabitants around us: we are the first white people to set foot on the territory where they live.
Little by little we learn that this small nation, which settled here two thousand years ago, has always refused to participate in military conflicts. Yes, they supplied the Viet Cong with food, but only because they forced them to. In general, they have good contacts with other tribes that inhabit the plain outside the jungle. The Zyarai offer them tobacco, medicinal plants, copper and other forest products, and they themselves receive metal products and agricultural tools in exchange.
The village leader invites us into his modest bamboo hut. It's dark inside and smells of smoke, but your eyes soon adjust. In the corner there is a hearth made of stones and everything needed to cook food, a fairly large set of knives of various sizes, tools for hunting, and next to the hearth there are mats for resting. It's pleasantly cool inside the hut. We came here in winter, but while the temperature at night is quite low, during the day it gives way to unbearable heat.
The owner of the house moves towards us a vessel filled with “jiu ge” - an alcoholic drink made from fermented rice. We take turns drinking, using a single rice straw. Traditionally, this drink is served during annual festivals and other celebrations, or when a completely unfamiliar guest appears. Meanwhile, one of the women prepares rice, which is then served with pieces of chicken and nuuoc mam sauce, made from fish and vegetables. The translator conveys to us the words of the owner, who is very upset that he cannot treat us with snake meat, frog legs and monkey brains - the favorite delicacies of the Zyara.
Alberto, the youngest member of our expedition, doesn’t actually drink, but he does sip “Jiu Ge” from time to time. And rightly so: this drink is much less hazardous to health than, for example, river water. Likewise, Igor, who at first did not have a very favorable attitude towards this product of rice distillation, now drinks it with pleasure.
The vessel with the straw has already made several circles, and the mistress of the house becomes very cheerful. At some point, in a fit of loud laughter, she shows everyone her front teeth, ground down almost to the ground, the stumps of which are painted black. The sight is truly terrible. It is impossible to guess how old this woman is. And when she talks about her age, that she got married when bombs were still falling from the sky there in the valley, it’s hard to believe.
I smile to hide my feelings and try to take a few pictures... I learn that the tradition of piercing earlobes and inserting bamboo sticks into the holes, as well as grinding down and painting teeth black, are all part of the ritual that signifies entry into adulthood.
Our Xuan, a girl of rare grace and beauty who is a third-year student at Hanoi University, shakes her head and for the second time expresses surprise in her broken Russian - until now she simply could not imagine that such a life existed in her country. From time to time, she curiously asks the owner about something, but each time, instead of an answer, she only receives a smile and a shake of her head - he clearly does not understand what they are saying to him.
I could never have imagined that in Vietnam on the threshold of the year 2000 I would have the opportunity to meet representatives of primitive tribes whose life was marked by the most extreme simplicity. The local hunters use the same crossbows and poisoned arrows, and the fishermen use the same nets and traps that their ancestors used. The forest satisfies all their needs, with rare exceptions. They get everything here - from material for building houses to game and fruit. For example, something like mats are made from the bark of some plants, which are placed under baskets fastened on the backs of elephants. The same bark provides the threads from which coarse fabrics are woven.
The next day gave us a unique sight: we witnessed a cruel ritual. Among many tribes in this region, buffalo breeding is common - but not so much for work and not for meat, but for sacrifices. The buffalo is considered the most expensive gift.
With the first rays of dawn, a feeling of something solemn fills the air. The day is sunny, the sky is dark azure. The ceremony begins sometime around noon. In the middle of the village, several thick bamboo trunks are dug into the ground, tightly tied together. Each trunk is richly decorated on top. A buffalo is tied to the trunks - a powerful animal with huge horns, weighing at least three tons. Calling cries, the beat of drums, the beat of a sacred gong, the roar of an animal - all this was mixed into one wild, unimaginable whirlwind of sounds. The buffalo, mad with fear, thrashes around furiously, trying to free itself. The music and screams gradually fade away, the buffalo stands rooted to the spot, flaring its nostrils - it feels its approaching death. Two men, holding sharply sharpened knives with exorbitantly long handles in their hands, creep up to the animal and with two precisely calculated movements instantly cut the tendons of its front legs. Letting out a terrible cry, the buffalo falls to his knees, and then a hail of arrows falls on him - the arrows take careful aim so as not to hit vital places. General exaltation, screams - and the unfortunate victim dies in terrible agony. For the villagers this is a great day, but for us it is simply a terrible, shudder-inducing performance. The Zyarai believe that the more the sacrificed buffalo suffers, the better: the further the evil spirits, the cause of all misfortunes, will move away from the village. The celebration ends with a hearty meal - and all this happens two steps away from the blood-stained site.
The life of a zyarai is divided into two stages. For ten months they work in the rice fields, cultivating sweet potatoes, maize, other grains, cassava, tobacco, and for two months they build and repair their huts, make pottery, weave baskets and, after felling a large tree, hollow out canoes. They also celebrate weddings. From time to time, men go hunting and, as a rule, bring a deer or antelope.
I ask if there are tigers here - I heard about them when I was traveling in Cambodia many months ago and wandered into places located not far from here. They tell me that several years ago in a village a day's journey from here, a tiger killed a girl. She was collecting firewood and went very close to the house. “But we decided we wouldn’t hunt him,” the man, whose back is heavily tattooed, mostly geometric designs, tells me.
The next day we leave this extraordinary oasis, which opened up a completely different world for us. Our obedient elephants move forward, and it seems that they are moving very slowly, but when Igor jumps to the ground to take a few photographs, he then has to run to catch up with us. The huge baskets in which we sit are not very comfortable for long journeys, and I remember with regret the camel saddles - in comparison with these baskets they seem like just down pillows.
Evening comes, the full moon appears - here it seems simply huge. We relax by the fire, stretched out in hammocks suspended from bamboo trunks. Every day fatigue accumulates more and more, but we nevertheless continue our journey, which brings us more and more new impressions. We are isolated from the whole world, we are surrounded by dangers, we are forced to overcome a lot of difficulties. Myriads of insects, poisonous snakes, mosquitoes - and malarial ones too, a difficult climate... Well, so what!
“All this is nothing compared to the brilliance of magnificent nature, so stunning, so diverse - it is here that a person feels how small and weak he is,” I wrote in my diary.
To the sound of crickets, Quang, the Hanoi official traveling with us, says that Vietnam's jungles were the theater of bloody battles. 27 years ago, as a boy, he took part in the attack on the American base at Pleiku, two days' march from where we are. Quang came along the “Ho Chi Minh Trail,” which stretched along the border between Laos and Cambodia. Eight American soldiers and at least 200 Vietnamese were killed in that battle at Pleiku. On the same day, the Pentagon carried out retaliatory attacks on North Vietnamese targets. This was the beginning of the US involvement in the war, which lasted ten years.
“Of those who fought with me in those days,” says Kuang, “only one of each five returned home.”
Our journey ends in Shuza - a village located on the very edge of civilization, along road number 14, which leads from Pleiku to Dalat - a resort founded by the French. We experienced unforgettable days, making a journey similar to the great expeditions of the past. It is with sadness that we say goodbye to our elephant friends - irreplaceable companions on this journey, patient, stubborn and funny giants.
Jacek Palkiewicz, Italian traveler. Translated from Italian by Lyudmila Filatova
