On July 11, the Vietnamese newspaper Dan Tri featured, with photos, an \u201cold school of distinctive curved architecture\u201d in Da Lat, drawing renewed attention. The subject is the former Lyc\u00e9e Yersin, built during the French colonial period\u2014now Da Lat Junior College (formerly Da Lat Teachers\u2019 Junior College). Da Lat, a highland city at about 1,500 m, bustles with direct flights from Ho Chi Minh City and summer visitors, and with the ___ scheduled for August,The reopening of Lien Khuong Airport, Da Lat's sky gateway<\/a>and access recovers further. Here we lay out, from a practical angle, the highlights of this 'impossibly beautiful old school,' whether you can visit, how to get there, and photography etiquette for working it into your itinerary.<\/p>\n What the article focused on is the schoolhouse block that traces a long arc along the hillside slope. Seen head-on, both ends curve gently toward you, like an open book. The designer is said to have imbued this curve with the meaning \"a thirst for learning,\" and the figure woven from red-brick walls and hillside green has become one of Da Lat's premier photo spots.<\/p>\n The building\u2019s symbol is a 54-meter bell tower standing at the highest point of the grounds. The slender tower is visible from all over the city and is still in active use as a backdrop for graduation and wedding photos. Looking up from nearby, you can clearly see the coursing of the red brick said to have been shipped from Europe and the texture of the bluish dark slate roof.<\/p>\n The school's history goes back to 1927. Construction began to a design by French architect Moncet, and it opened at first as the 'Petit Lycee Dalat,' attended by French children and those of some wealthy Vietnamese families. In 1935 it was renamed Lycee Yersin after Dr. Alexandre Yersin, the bacteriologist who 'discovered' the town of Da Lat.<\/p>\n The building's design drew on architectural elements from Morges, Switzerland, with which Dr. Yersin had ties, expressed in features like the bell tower, steeply pitched roof, and arched cloister. In 2022 it was merged with nearby educational institutions and is now used as Da Lat Junior College. Even as its name and use have changed, the building itself has stood on the hill for more than 90 years.<\/p>\n Here is a list of the key verified figures. Because the curved schoolhouse\u2019s overall length differs by source between the near and far sides, only the high-confidence items are given here.<\/p>\nWhat Is the \"Arcing School Building\" Reported by D\u00e2n Tr\u00ed?<\/h2>\n
From Petit Lyc\u00e9e to Yersin, and then to a junior college<\/h2>\n
Architectural specs by the numbers<\/h2>\n