Writer: Laila, Anouk and Nina (Office Volunteers)
Written on: 23rd of December 2024
In mid-November, us volunteers from Da Nang had the opportunity to travel to Pleiku and visit our friend and colleague Thuy in her hometown to stay with her and her family for a few days. It was our first weekend trip since arriving here in September and we were really excited to see more of Vietnam and visit places other than Da Nang and its surroundings. So, on a Friday evening, we took a sleeper bus from Da Nang's bus terminal and arrived in Pleiku around 5:30 a.m. the following day. Thuy welcomed us into her home and we were able to get a few more hours of sleep.
Once we felt more rested, we had lunch at her house and met her whole family, who were so kind and welcoming and made us feel right at home! After lunch, we met up with some of Thuy's friends and went to the Wild Sunflower Festival in Gia Lai, which was held at the dormant Chư Đăng Ya volcano.
After watching the rehearsal for the evening performance and getting asked lots of times to take pictures with the locals, who probably were not used to seeing foreigners in the area, we headed off for the short hike up the volcano.
On the way up we could already admire so many wild sunflowers, but the view from the top was even more breathtaking! We found a good spot to rest and enjoyed some hot cocoa and green tea that one of Thuy's friends had brought.
As the sun began to set, we headed back home, where we had dinner at a restaurant with one of Thuy's sisters and her niece and enjoyed some delicious vegetarian dishes.
After a good night's sleep, we drove to a beautiful wooden café right next to the Biển Hồ (sea lake) on Sunday. There we took a walk around the lake and up to the Bodhisattva statue.
Afterwards, Thuy took us on a little road trip around Pleiku along a road beneath an almost kilometer-long canopy of century-old pine trees and the surrounding tea fields (Biển Hồ Chè), which cover over 1,000 hectares. From there we were also able to admire the Buu Minh Pagoda, which is one of the tallest pagodas in Vietnam and is located right next to the tea fields.
Just before sunset, we drove to Tan Son Dam, which was a great place to admire the surrounding mountains in the last sunlight. When we got back to Pleiku, Thuy took us to a small street restaurant that she always returns to when she visits home to eat Bánh bèo, and we were absolutely hooked! Later that evening, we had a nice dinner with the whole family and then went for an evening walk around Đại Đoàn Kết Square in the heart of Pleiku.
On Monday we got up early to get some work done. For this purpose, Thuy brought us to a cozy treehouse-like cafe overlooking the rice fields. I have to admit that it was quite difficult to do anything other than admire the view, but somehow we still managed to get our work done!
In the afternoon, Thuy took us on one last trip to see the Minh Thành Pagoda and some of the surrounding area. In the evening we shared a last dinner with the whole family before we started on our long sleeper bus ride back and arrived back in Da Nang the next morning a little tired but with great memories.
Staying with Thuy and her family and getting to know their hometown was such a pleasure! We are incredibly grateful to them for letting us stay with them for a few days and treating us like we were part of their family. We are sure that this trip will also be a fond memory for us to look back on when we are back in Germany.
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