History and location
The history of the railway dated back to 1932, when its plan
was finally carried out by two French architects named Moncet and Reveron,
under the acceptance of Paul Doumer – the French Governor – General of
Indochina from 1897 to 1902. Finally, the constrcution was completed 6 years
later, after several difficulties such as the last stretch, traversing Lam Vien
Plateau. However, it was largely unused since abandonment of the railway (due
to attack) during the later years of the Vietnam War. In 1991, 7km of the track
between Dalat and Trai Mat were reconstructed and launched into operation for
tourists.
What to see
Regarded as one of the finest piece of colonial engineering
and architecture in Vietnam, the station was designed in Art Deco style which
is perfectly in harmony with local characteristics and culture. Its three high
pointed roofs resemble the three peaks of Lang Biang Mountain or as some people
say, the communal house of ethnic minorities in Central Highland of Vietnam
(called Nha Rong). Each roof contains multi-color glass window and the central
roof has a huge clock which has been restored recently.
The other distinctive feature of Dalat railway station is
the cog railways. The total length of the railway is 84km from Dalat to Thap
Cham station with 16km of cog railway designed by Swedish engineers. Because of
the mountainous geography, a system of cog railroad and locomotive is needed to
provide the traction for uphill slopes and slow down the train when going
downhill. The construction had to overcome many difficulties of the mountainous
terrain so that it leaded to such a long period of time to complete which was
24 years.
Train Travel
In the past, there were two daily trains from Dalat to Nha
Trang and Dalat to Saigon with three compartments for passengers and one for
goods. However, during the Vietnam wars, the railways and station became the
target of bombing and they were seriously destroyed. After the fall of Saigon
and the national unification in 1975, the railways were repaired and put back
into use.
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