VietNamNet Bridge - Nicknamed Le Petit Paris, Da Lat city in the central Highlands Province of Lam Dong is known as the most vibrant example of French colonial architecture in Indochina.
1/ Da Lat Teachers College reflects architecture popular in eastern France; 2/King Bao Dai’s Palace designed by French architect He’brard has typical characters of French architecture.
Around 1,000 buildings in the city are hailed as typical examples of French architecture at the end of the 19th century, with the city’s different facades illustrating styles from various regions across France.
When French colonialists invaded Viet Nam, they sent many talented architects to build up the country. Many headed to Da Lat city, attracted by the temperate climate and surrounding countryside.
During the reign of Paul Dumer, Indochinese General Governor between 1897 and 1902, Paul Champoudry, mayor of the city, employed a team of well known architects including Ernest Hebrard (1875-1933), Mondet, J.Lagisquet and L.G Pineau to Da Lat.
Up to 1949, over 1,000 residential buildings were constructed, each one unique and in harmony with its surroundings. None of these houses exceeded three floors.
A walk through the town is like a small tour of early colonial architectural fashions from across France. Tran Hung Dao Street follows the architectural style popular in northern France with its wooden walls and more demure fronts.
Turn onto Co Giang Street and the streets are lined with small castles, typical of the south-eastern regions.
A housing estate on Quang Trung Street illustrates the character of houses in the south of France with tiled roofs. Other constructions, including Da Lat Station and Grand Lycee Yersin School (1935) now known as Da Lat Teachers College show architecture popular in eastern France.
Train-shaped station
One of the town’s most famous architectural features is Da Lat Train Station, designed in 1936 and completed in 1938 by two French architects Moncet and Reveron.
One of the reasons why the stations is so popular with tourists is because it is shaped like a train. The station was designed distinctly in western style, but also has some characteristics of a Central Highlands communal building with its high and steeply sloping roof. It is decorated with stained-glass windows and arched ceilings. The three roofs represent the three peaks of Langbiang Mountain, the symbol of Da Lat city.
The Da Lat line stretches 84km long through high mountain passes to Trai Mat Station, to the north. A cogwheel system is designed for steep slopes and has a locomotive with a centre cogwheel that engages with a cogged centre rail. The train ride reveals a panoramic view of Da Lat and the surrounding beauty of the Central Highlands. In 2001, Da Lat Train Station became the only building of its kind to gain recognition as a national historical monument.
Because the rail route originates in Da Lat, it is reserved for tourist travel only, says Ngo Minh Chau, director of the station. "French architects designed the station based on the shape of Langbiang Mountain. That’s why it symbolises the city," he says." Local government has spent VND800 million (nearly US$45,700) on restoring four carriages from steam trains produced by Japan around 1936, he says.
Palace royale
Another favourite architectural feature in the town is King Bao Dai’s palace on Trieu Viet Vuong Street. Located on a forest-covered hill, the palace was built over the period 1933 to 1937 as a summer holiday house for the King, the last one of Nguyen dynasty.
The palace was designed by architects Hebrard and Huynh Tan Phat with detailed ornamental gardens.
The palace has two floors. The first was built to host feasts and welcome guests and officials. All the bedrooms for each of the royal family are upstairs. Their portraits were hung on walls in the palace. Remnants of the king’s enthusiasm for hunting are scattered around the palace, including a tiger skin rug and elephant tusks.
One of the most popular parts of the palace for tourists is the balcony outside the king’s bedroom, named Lau Vong Nguyet (balcony to watch the moon). From the balcony, tourists can see over the many red roof villas in the pine tree forest and down into the valley: the perfect spot to survey the spirit of French design that still lingers in the landscape.
VietNamNet/VNS
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