Visiting the reproduced Great Wall in Dalat

The reproduced Great Wall in Dalat in the early morning.

The Great Wall of China is 6,700-kilometres long from east to west, 1,000-kilometres at its highest point and has existed for over two centuries.  Mong Mo Hill, which is two kilometres long, is not an obvious comparison. However, visitors may still enjoy a relaxing and pleasant time wandering on this “little” Great Wall. 

When the 20-hectare Mong Mo hill area was first constructed, four kilometres from Dalat and near Love Valley in 2003, the reproduction situated at the end of the hill quickly caught the interest of many tourists.  The best time to visit is at 8 a.m. to enjoy the beauty of nature in the early morning, hear the sound of water in the artificial waterfall and observe a flock of pigeons perched on a 300-year old house from Binh Dinh Province.  A signboard with the well-known saying “Bat dao truong thanh phi hao han” welcomes visitors to the little Great Wall, inviting them to pose for a picture.  From there a short walk up and down a road made from the rock of the little Great Wall leads to many gates of enticing stops. 

The first stop is a stage for Cong Chieng (gong) shows which are played by the ethnic minority in the Highlands every weekend.

The second stop, at the end of stone steps, is to visit a cellar displaying a variety of ruou can (special wine drunk out of a jar through pipes).  Local wines are on sale here for souvenir shopping, or visitors may pause at the rattan table and chairs for a cup of wine before continuing on their walk.  

The next stop is a house on stilts, displaying many kinds of che and chum (jars made by different ethnic peoples). This extensive che and chum collection was accumulated by the Museum with great effort. The museum guide, who is an ethnic woman, will explain the colours and the use of each kind of jar.  There is a second house on stilts where tourists may taste free samples of ruou can and learn how to operate a model rice mortar.  Wild deer barbecue is available here on request.

The tour of the little Great Wall ends at the wine brewery house on stilts, where tourists get a first hand look at how Tay Nguyen people brew their wine and catch the warm wine-drops from the large wine brewing pot in the centre of the house.

Leaving this “made-in-Dalat” Great Wall, visitors may be a little tired after going up and down so many sections of the road, but will certainly have enjoyed their many interesting stops.

(Source:SGT)