That was a morning at a coffee in Can Tho, the owner just randomly shown up and told us the story of his "Pleiku cafe". And before we know, he got us buy not just a cup of cafe but also the dream of moving to Pleiku.

The spring in Ia Sao, a town next to Pleiku.

Where are we going today?

There is a musician compared Bien Ho Lake to the eyes of the one he loves. Even though I always wondered if it is real or just a commercial song, I never had a courage to find the answer for it. But after the talk with that coffee's owner, my partner and I decided to go to Gia Lai and ​look for the eyes of Pleiku.
Pleiku is the city of Gia Lai province. This place is not yet "industrialized" for tourism so it still has the rural vibe to it which is hard to find in any other cities.

Our endless adventures

We actually just planned to come visiting Pleiku for a few days, but at the last minute, our trip was extended. We move to Pleiku and had our life there for almost a year.
Pleiku is just a small part of our journey in Gia Lai, to seek for our truths, challenge ourselves and find our spirits.

So many people was working on their coffee farms why we drove by. This guy's customized "buffalo" is louder than any big bike.

Bien Ho lake is not too close from the city center of Pleiku. We went to this lake in a foggy-early morning by locals recommendation. Their wisdom told us to not pay $1 entrance fee but entering the lake by a dirt-road on the side. I thought it's a dumb idea for seconds, then true, trust the locals, guys!
We never could imagine that there is a place would have cold weather in the South of Vietnam, but we were frozen that morning in Bien Ho - the heart of Pleiku. This dirt road will make you feel like getting lost in the wood with tons of trees around.

Diry-road next to Bien Ho

Even a fish net could look cool hiding in the fog at Bien Ho.

This boat teaches me a lesson: When things got rotten, don't try to chain it, let it go.

We sit by the lake for the whole hour without talking. Bien Ho in the morning feels like a fragile girl, you don't want to make a rush move on her. Just observing her from afar and slowly fall in love with her.
I noticed that there is only one bridge connects two part of the villages next to Bien Ho. It is extremely old and broken but the whole community depends on it for their daily life.

The bridge carrying so many lives, watching kids growing, and seeing change is coming on our way.

Bien Ho when the sun shows up. The lake has a crystal green color, it must be the biggest lake I've ever seen with almost noone around. But of course you won't experience this if you enter the lake by the main gate because they turned the area inside to a park that people come to exercise, hang out, and for tourist.

Found our own eyes of Pleiku

We drove to a small town next to Pleiku to catch up with our friend for lunch. They call that place Ia Sao, a quite neighborhood hidden in the coffee trees. Our plan was to go back here after lunch but...

I don't know how the road got flooded.

Someone just left their bike here to go finishing at Ia Sao lake.

We lost in the coffee farms on the way back while looking for Ia Sao lake. The whole road is cover by the pure white color of coffee flowers. We could not find anyone to ask for direction, our phone dead so the only option was just go with the flow.

Coffee flowers blooming in the spring in Ia Sao

At the end of the road, we didn't expect to see a little waterfall. And do you know where the water flow to? Ia Sao Lake. We eventually found Ia Sao lake after taking a break at the waterfall, and it was getting dark already. It seems like we found our own eyes of Pleiku, the one that we love.

Hidden waterfall that has no location on the map yet.

We're going back home when the sun was going down in Ia Sao lake

Thank you for joining us today. Please keep in mind that this is just a small part of our adventure in Pleiku. I'm sure that you will love to have a ride with us next time.