As I was walking around downtown Da Lat, I picked up a flyer about an Easy Rider tour taking travelers on a motorcycle exploration of the countryside. I was not one to easily shell out money on tour packages, but I figured I could easily sightsee the outskirts of Da Lat as a passenger on the back of a Vietnamese Dennis Hopper. I couldn’t text the number as I did not have a local SIM card. Fortunately, my hostel—Da Lat Homestay—offered the same tour. Along with the other guests, who all turned out to be Israelis, I signed up for the Easy Rider the next day.
The Chiseled Wall and Gushing Curtain of Pongour Waterfall | Da Lat, Vietnam
Easy Riding through the Countryside
Da Lat sat 4,900 feet above sea level in the southern part of Vietnam’s central highlands, which gave it a cool climate most of the year. I found the December morning wind chill of about fourteen degrees Celsius too cold to embrace, especially aboard a speeding motorcycle. However, as soon as we rolled smoothly over the snaking roads of the mountainside and the colorful sunflower fields and terraced coffee farms greeted my sight, I became unbothered by the cold.
We stopped by various coffee and tea plantations, a handmade noodle factory, Elephant Falls, a couple of temples, and a mushroom farm throughout the day. As fascinating as our pit stops were, Pongour Waterfall was hands down the highlight of the day.
As someone who had seen some of the best waterfalls in the Philippines, the idea of visiting a new one still excited me. Although the spilling waters of Pongour were chocolate-colored, contrasting with the glass-like streams from the waterfalls back home, its tall and wide chiseled walls blessed it with an edgy appearance.
Impenetrable Water Shutters of Pongour
Like a ticket booth shutting its window at the strike of closing time, the multi-level cascades of Pongour Waterfall dropped like curtains over its nature-fashioned wall, which spread lengthily like a theater stage.
Along the small gaps of the rampaging freshwater, one could see the wall glistening with a golden hue while being kissed by the sheen of the sun. The rest of the wall appeared to be covered by draperies, as if preventing the exposure of the impressive chiseled job by Mother Nature.
Since swimming and even taking a dip was then not allowed, I opted to take a seat on a large boulder and stared intently at the whole span of Pongour Waterfall. As I listened to the sound of the flowing waters, I imagined a harmonic orchestra playing a melodious score as the curtains of Pongour Waterfall dropped one after another, letting us, the audience, feel its hydraulic power and marvel at its sheer beauty.
