The name Pleiku is normally associated with the American warfare as one of the main theatres of operations. It was a North Vietnam Army assault on Pleiku that prompted Lyndon Johnson to authorise the ‘Operation Rolling Thunder’, a campaign of sustained heavy bombing. It was additionally the location of the war’s first conventional battle. When Buon Ma Thuot fell to the North Vietnam Military, the South Vietnam Military deserted Pleiku, leaving it little more than a ruin.  

After the war, it was rebuilt with USSR help, so it’s hardly shocking that it has all of the charm of a Soviet gulag.  

On the positive side, it has enticing countryside and some delightful home keep locations. 

Pleiku is the provincial capital of Gia Lai province, about 50km south of Kon Tum and approximately 200km from Quy Nhon and is linked to Ho Chi Minh City by regular Vietnam Airline flights. There’s a decent local hotel and a few reasonable restaurants, but don’t count on an international menu. 

Away from the city, visitors can see the striking Phu Cuong waterfall, a single torrent plunging vertically into a seething cauldron of water and spray at its base. In complete distinction, Plei Bloum village is a quiet settlement overlooking a broad, slow-transferring river. The sunset across the valley from the veranda of an ethnic homestays is a joy!  

A fascinating characteristic of the Gia Rai villages are their cemeteries. The tombs take the type of mini-houses surrounded by carved wood effigies, often humorous and sometimes graphic depictions of stages of procreation. Plei Phun cemetery is a good example. 

Life is gentle within the villages. You’ll be welcomed on all sides, and invited to affix in local ceremonies and activities. As with the remainder of the plateaux area, you’ll find the Gia Rai ethnic people of Plei Phun remarkably pleasant, generous and undemanding.  

The sweeping thatched roofs of the normal ‘rong’ communal houses of the Ba Na individuals are one of the vital distinguishing features of the Central Highlands. Standing inside and looking up, you’ll be amazed by the intricate lattice of supports that allow the roof to withstand sturdy winds. 

The huge Bien Ho (Sea Lake) is the flooded crater of an ancient volcano. Though it’s an attractive location, it warrants only a short visit as a result of there’s not a lot else to do apart from looking on the view. You might pause somewhat while to surprise why the water level hardly varies at all, regardless of the prolonged desiccating droughts that reduce the plateau to a dustbowl each spring.  

It’s not worth bothering with the much-touted Yaly Falls. As soon as one of Vietnam’s most spectacular waterfalls, almost all the water has been diverted to a hydro-electric power plant. It’s tempting to grouse about conservation; however it’s important to do not forget that Gia Lai is likely one of the poorest and sparsely populated provinces in the nation, mainly due to its insufficient infrastructure. Electrification is bringing jobs.