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alat, a young city located on the cool South West Highlands, a destination for travellers from distant places and" little Paris? of the Vietnamese people, has become a beloved stop of many tourists. In people's mind, the most thing to remember about Dalat is the craggy houses by the

 hill roads hidden in the  morning fog. People will also have a discreet admiration towards the architecture of the old French-styled villas and mansions with Langbiang mountain as background or nestling in the green pine forests inside the city. 

Since Dr. Yersin set foot on this desolate land of the Lach's people on June 21, 1893, there have been many planning schemes formed, approved and executed. This has contributed to the new appearance  of the city in the flow of time and history. The concept of ?the in-wood city? or ?wood in the city? was an original creation of urban architectural scheming closely connected to the natural landscape which is not only modern but also specific for Dalat. 

It is necessary  to recall the idea of ?biological series of lakes? by Architect Hebrard in his earliest planning scheme approved in 1923. This can be associated with the image of a river

inside the city  with beautiful small boats carrying tourists for a sightseeing tour around the city. In the near future, Dalat will also have several large squares, flower gardens with spacious view, just like Architect Lagisquet's sketch in his planning scheme (1943) of Dalat Golf Course, which is also called ?Cu Hill?, next to the beautiful Xuan Huong Lake. This construction has a broad view towards Langbiang mountain. These were very unusual concepts of solutions of space planning and creation of European-styled urban architecture in comparison to other plans in Vietnam by then, which needs to be respected and inherited. 

Skimming over the appearance of Dalat architectural ensemble from 1945 to 1954, we can easily notice the specific characteristics of the Indochina-French architecture through the villas once occupied by the French such as the Palaces (I, II, III), Palace Hotel, Railway Station, Teachers? Training College, Cartographic House, Pasteur Institute and some other religious monuments. Other constructions which were known as ?post-modern? architecture in 1954-1945 have inherited the harmonious and charming style of the former ones such as New Market, Nuclear Plant, Dalat University, banks... 

Dalat turned to its new page of peace after the marvellous victory of the people in April, 1975. Although the country was still burdened by poverty and hunger and controlled by a central economy in the period of 1975-1986, Dalat still had various typical architectural constructions such as War Dead Memorial, Suoi Vang Hydroelectric Station, Children's Centre, Trade Union Hotel, Provincial Committee Hall (old) among thousands of metres square of land for administrative purposes and people's material and welfare. In the period of innovation and market economy in 1986-2000, there have been many encouraging breakthroughs in architectural solutions for private constructions such as Golf Hotel, Empress Hotel, Truc Lam Monastery, other banks, offices, Provincial Committee Zone (new). It will be a  

Insufficient shortcoming if we do not mention other landscapes which help contribute to the new image of Dalat tourism such as Love Valley, Tuyen Lam Lake, the Golf Course, Dalat Flower Garden, Xuan Huong Lake and Prenn Waterfall. 

At the moment of transferring between two milleniums, it is necessary to review and sum up the achievements of Dalat. Once it is a second class city, there need to be more modern and interesting ideas in scheming and architecture in order to affirm the progressive and modern character of the period of integration and development as it was mentioned in 'solutions of adjusting the planning scheme for the whole city and its neighbourhood? (by Architect Vu Kim Long and his aids) which was approved by the Government in 1994. This is a practical, urgent and responsible deed of those who love Dalat - on the threshold of  the 21st century. 

                      ARCHITECT TRAN DUC LOC

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