Ly Hoang Long

Some 130 years since its founding and development, Dalat has been dubbed the “20th Century French Architecture Museum of Vietnam”. Hundreds of charming villas hidden by pine trees were built to serve as homes and holiday houses for French colonists in Indochina. Nostalgic for their homeland, they built villas and offices in European styles. Over time, the villas’ architecture grew more diverse, inspired by the typical styles of Normandy, Provence, Bretagne, Savoie, and the Basque region.

A classic French oeil-de-boeuf window

Thanks to this diverse regional French architecture, Dalat boasts a unique collection of windows. If “the eyes are the windows to the soul”, aren’t windows the eyes of a house?

In villas built in open spaces, windows are often located on the east and west sides, where they face the most beautiful moments of the day, from the golden glow of dawn to the last rays of sun at sunset.

To this day, it is still easy to admire many beautiful “villa eyes” in this mountain town, from the two-pane glass windows popular in the 19th century seen on Le Hong Phong Street, to the 17th century Provence-style arched windows on Tran Phu Street, and the Marseille-style louvered arched windows and double doors common in the 19th century on Hoang Van Thu and Hung Vuong Streets.

An octagonal window adds elegance

The most popular and impressive type of window is the dormer window, located symmetrically under the two sloping sides of an A-shaped tiled roof. It is usually a round, elegant window that creates a harmonious composition between straight and curved lines. This round window can easily be transformed according to the owner’s preferences. It can feature a round shutter that fits snugly, a square shutter that is balanced, a ring of terracotta tiles that create a delicate pattern, or even an octagonal shape.

Like our eyes, each house’s windows reflect the owner’s personality. If square or rectangular window frames are simple but solid and calm, arched or round ones are gentle and deep with soft curves. Many people feel that straight lines are outgoing while circles are introverted. In any case, when entering a house with expansive open windows, we feel a friendly and welcoming vibe. Closed windows and doors can leave us feeling hesitant and cautious…

An interesting ventilation window on a villa on Tran Binh Trong Street

We are too familiar with images of tourist attractions packed with people and vehicles. To escape the crowds, why not stroll along streets like Hoang Dieu, Yagout, Yet Kieu, and Tran Hung Dao to admire the houses’ charming windows? Here, every visitor can admire the peaceful sky and old memories.