Floating market is a type of market that often appears in the river area, which is considered the main traffic route. Where both the seller and the buyer use the boat as a means of transportation. Places with floating markets are usually in the river sections that are neither too wide nor too narrow.
In Vietnam, floating markets often meet in the Southwest region. We can not ignore Cai Rang Floating Market, appearing in the early 20th century with more than 100 years of establishment and development, this is a wholesale floating market specializing in buying and selling vegetables and fruits on the Can Tho River and is a unique attraction of Cai Rang district, Can Tho city. Address: Can Tho River, 46 Hai Ba Trung Street, Ninh Kieu District, Can Tho City.
Cai Rang floating market is located at the confluence of rivers (branch of Hau River and Cai Rang River). In 2016, Cai Rang Floating Market was recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage, becoming the pride of people in the Mekong Delta. Visitors can visit the floating market in any season of the year. In addition, if you want to discover a special season that only in the West, you should come here between mid-August and late November. Market begin from 2-3 am, busiest around 4-6 am, trading activities take place all day. Immersed in the atmosphere here, visitors can observe and learn about the activities of many families with many generations living together on the boat, each boat is a house on the river.
What's special about the floating market?
These are "4 hanging" unique methods at floating market:
- Hang whatever you want to sell: The owner of the boat that sells anything will hang it on a tree so that the opposite boat can easily identify the item.
- Hanging without selling: Clothes of households living right on boats.
- Do not hang but sell: These are the boats serving food on the river for everyone such as vermicelli, noodle soup, braised coffee, meatloaf...
- Hang this but sell differently: When the boat owner wants to sell their boat, they will hang a roof sheet on the tree.
It can be said that the cuisine on the river is extremely diverse with many delicious dishes such as porridge, noodle soup, fried vermicelli, rib rice... Among the many unique dishes at the floating market, you can try shaking noodle and braised coffee. These are the two dishes that you must not miss when coming to Cai Rang Floating Market.
It is called shaking noodle because when customers want to eat, they will feel "shaken back and forth" because the boat is floating on the river. For braised coffee, there is an interesting story: People often bring a stove and keep the fire low to keep coffee hot when drinking (because the river is windy, so the coffee cools quickly). This image reminds people of the name warehouse coffee. Therefore, if you are invited to drink warehouse coffee, do not worry, just enjoy it.
There are no tables and chairs like on the shore, most of the shops on the floating market are processed for people to eat on the spot or put in plastic bowls and cups to take away.
After the pandemic passed, trading activities on the floating market were no longer as busy as before. Small traders on boats now have to move ashore or change to other occupations to earn enough income to sustain their lives. But even so, floating market is still the pride of Vietnamese people about a beauty of history and national culture. These are the values that Viet Cone always want to preserve and introduce to international friends.
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