Friday, January 9, 2009

VIETNAM'S FLOATING MARKET


QT Luong


QT Luong


QT Luong


QT Luong


Image source


Image source


Image source

Cai Rang Floating Market
Can Thao City, Vietnam

The Cai Rang Floating Market is one of several floating markets in Vietnam's Mekong Delta. In the southwestern provinces, people mostly travel on rivers. In the past, people living on the rivers had to go to the land to buy goods but now they can buy everything they need on the river.The Market is open all day but it is busiest from sunrise to about 9am. Locals go to the market to buy and sell a variety of fruits and vegetables from boats of all sizes. The main items sold there are farm products and specialties of Cai Rang Town, Chau Thanh district and neighboring areas.

During the early morning market hours, larger sized boats anchor and create lanes that smaller boats weave in and out of. The waterway becomes a maze of hundreds of boats packed with mangos, bananas, papaya, pineapple, and even smuggled goods like cigarettes. Sellers tie their goods to a tall pole so that buyers can see from a distance what they are selling. Other boats sell beer, wine and soft drinks to the merchants and the buyers.

Activities at the market are also an occasion for tourists to study the cultural aspects of southerners.

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1 comment:

  1. Wouldn't it be nice to have something like this in the 'police state' we call the United States.
    Papers please!!

    ReplyDelete