Spring markets

(Baonghean) - In the days leading up to Tet, Hau market in Tien Thuy commune (Quynh Luu) suddenly became more noisy and bustling than usual. When the mist still covered the market, somewhere under the old, worn conical hats, people were warmly greeting each other at the end of the year. Women and mothers went to the market from the moment the rooster crowed in the morning, some carrying baskets of vegetables still covered with morning dew, others carrying bunches of green bananas, a few chickens, dong leaves, rice, sticky rice... calling out to buy and sell.

From old memories

Although it is only the 20th of December, the warm atmosphere of spring has filled the simple countryside market, dispelling the biting cold of the last winter day of the year. At more than 5 am, many carts carrying goods, baskets of vegetables and fruits from neighboring communes such as Quynh Nghia, Quynh Minh, Quynh Luong have been bustling to the market, selling and buying. Many people go to the market to shop for Tet, many people go to the market just to see and enjoy the atmosphere of the countryside market on the last day of the year. Tet comes and stirs the hearts of those far from home because of the image of the simple countryside market. After a long day of making a living, those far from home go to the market to feel the spring atmosphere. They go to the market to return to their childhood memories, or simply to see the colorful and bustling countryside market. To me, Oyster Market has a magical attraction. It has been nearly 30 years since I left this market when I was a child, but I can never forget the peaceful image of the countryside markets on the eve of Tet, especially when I think of my grandmother.

At that time, I was only 7 or 8 years old. Every summer or Tet holiday, my mother would let me go back to my grandmother's hometown. My hometown, a peaceful coastal village, was like this rural market. My grandmother often brought to the market to sell the shrimp, fish, prawns, and sea snails that her grandfather had harvested. On the days before Tet, she went to the market and also had a bunch of green bananas in her garden and 5 or 7 chickens that she had saved up to sell for Tet so that she could have some extra money to buy her grandchildren new clothes to wear during the spring. Every time like that, I often followed my grandmother. When I went to the market, I was always drawn to the fragrant pans of fried cakes and banh cuc. After selling her goods, she bought a few kilos of rice, sticky rice, dong leaves, onions, etc. and always had a gift for me. Until now, I still have the feeling of shyness when standing in the middle of the market trying on the new clothes. She bought them, washed them, and waited until the afternoon of the 30th of Tet to let me wear them to prepare for the new spring, clean and fragrant.

Decades have passed, time can change everything but this strange oyster market is still the same, still a few rows of old shacks, with stalls selling groceries, dried goods, groceries, fish, meat, betel and areca nuts... spread out on tarps, plastic sheets on the ground or stored in baskets, pots, basins. Behind the market are rows of seafood stalls, vegetables, fruits, brooms, mats... sold outdoors. In particular, the seafood at the oyster market is very fresh because the fish, shrimp, and squid are caught from the sea and brought to the market by mothers and sisters, so almost every morning there are sparkling fresh fish and shrimp, except on days when the sea is rough.

Mrs. Nguyen Thi Sau is nearly 70 years old this year, with black teeth, a native of Tien Thuy commune who has been selling betel and areca nuts at Hau market for more than 40 years. Over the past 40 years, the same familiar seat has been exposed to the elements, with the ground sinking and sinking, but the areca nut basket and betel tray remain intact. In the days before Tet, the demand for betel increased, Mrs. Sau asked her children and grandchildren to collect more goods from other localities to sell. She carefully wrapped each betel leaf for customers in banana leaves so that the betel would stay fresh for a long time during Tet. Next to it is the dried goods stall of Mrs. Quan, 75 years old, who has been selling at the market for more than 30 years, with only familiar items in the daily life of the villagers, a little bit of chives, soapberry, clay candles, peanuts, sesame, mushrooms, onions, garlic, cellophane noodles and even votive offerings. Mrs. Quan confided to me that her life is attached to this market. Every day she goes to the market to open her shop at 6am, and even earlier for the Tet market. She only has to take a day off when she is sick. Every meal at home, she leaves her heart at the market. With little capital and selling small items, the profit is not much, but going to the market, she finds joy in life from the warm, bustling atmosphere with familiar faces selling and buying. She feels like she has more vitality to live the remaining years of her old age.

The Hau market at the end of the year seems to be larger, with the capacity to accommodate all the goods from neighboring communes for exchange and trade. Besides, there are still familiar products in the daily life of the villagers, green vegetables, green onions, sugarcane, bananas, oranges, grapefruits, etc. picked in rustic home gardens, so the Hau market is famous for many "clean" products, without chemicals or toxic additives in consumer products. Perhaps that is why the market always attracts many visitors from all over the country, many people living in Giat Town or other communes more than 10 km away from the Hau market, in their free time, take advantage of this market to buy products that are rustic and clean. These days, the Hau market has many new items such as paintings, cakes, jams, fresh flowers, bunches of banana leaves, dong leaves, oranges, grapefruits, papayas, etc. fresh green. A corner of the market is bright with yellow chrysanthemums, lilies, gladiolus, red roses, and carnations competing to show off their colors. Mothers and grandmothers go to the market to prepare for Tet, from onions, dong leaves, meat, a chicken for the 30th evening offering, to cakes, candies, incense, fruits, or a new broom to sweep the house, to make sure that Tet is complete, and every family gathers warmly around the Tet feast in spring.

Go to the Highland Market

In the spring colors that filled every road, in the bitter cold of the last days of the year, we traveled more than 30 km towards Tri Le commune (Que Phong) to explore the most unique market in this border area. Although it was past 7 am, the road from Kim Son town to Tri Le commune was still deserted. The "out of date" passenger bus slowly carried more than 5 passengers and carefully packed goods up Chuoi slope. Every now and then, the bus stopped to receive more goods sent by people to their relatives up here. Unlike other passenger buses, the driver was also the "bus assistant" so passengers could sit wherever they wanted. After 45 minutes of slowly climbing the slope, the first bus of the new day arrived at Tri Le market. As soon as we got off the bus, the cold seeped into our skin, making us shiver and gasp. Even though we had been informed in advance and had put on many layers of warm clothes, we still could not avoid the cold in this remote border area.

Local products are always the most popular items. Photo: Pham Bang

Tri Le Market was established in the 1980s by people from neighboring villages and people from the lowlands. Initially, the market was just a row of ramshackle thatched houses, but gradually, as people's living standards improved, many people invested in building kiosks right in their homes to trade. The market is open every day of the month, but the busiest time is from 6am to 10am. Therefore, a market village has been formed here with more than 70 stalls with a full range of products... The most typical feature of Tri Le Market is the local products that people bring to exchange and trade such as wild bamboo shoots, taro, black chicken... Meanwhile, shoes, clothes, soap, sea fish... are also brought to the market by many people from the lowlands and always attract the attention of the highlanders. Confiding in us, Ms. Lo Y Van, from Huoi Sai 1 village, had to wake up at 3:30 a.m. and travel more than 20km to get to the market on time. The simple, austere look and shy smile on the lips of this Mong woman seemed to warm the biting cold of a winter morning in the highlands. The goods she brought to the market were vegetables and tubers from her home garden, hoping to sell them at a good price to have money to buy new clothes for her children and some food for her family to prepare for the traditional New Year.

Tri Le Commune (Que Phong) is considered the "capital" of fog and cold. Because it is not winter yet, people can no longer see each other within 10m of each other, and the cold here is sometimes only 5 - 7 degrees Celsius. But the year-end market has erased all of that, giving way to the warmth thanks to the greetings, the friendly handshakes, and the exchange of products brought to the market by the hands of people from both countries. Because it is only about 15km from the Lao border, Lao people often come to exchange and trade goods with the locals every day. Lao people mainly come to buy food and clothes.

Mr. Chan Bon, Phan Thoong village cluster (Sam To district, Hua Phan province, Laos) had to wake up at dawn to ride his motorbike to Tri Le market to buy some household items. Going around the market, Mr. Bon chose for himself many tools such as hoes and shovels, a cassette player and some clothes for his children. Mr. Bon said: “Since the roads became more convenient, I often come here to shop. Vietnamese people are very friendly and open, and there are many goods, so there is a lot of choice. Sellers and buyers are like family members, no need to bargain, just buy the product if you like it. Every time I go to the market, I can immerse myself in the bustling atmosphere of the market, chat and interact with many people. Through that, I learn a lot of experience to apply to increase production.”

Compared to previous years, the purchasing power of the people this year is somewhat more reserved and limited. The reason is that people have started to produce their own food and household items. The road connecting the center of Tri Le commune with 8 Mong villages has become convenient, motorbikes can travel smoothly for about 30 minutes to the market, so they can shop any day instead of waiting until Tet like before. Mr. Dam Thien Thuong - Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Tri Le commune said: Most of the people from remote villages go to the market to both stroll and buy some personal items. They are basically self-sufficient in food, so they do not waste time traveling anymore. People going to the market also have the opportunity to interact, learn, and exchange cultural features and production knowledge for themselves. But thanks to the market, the lives of the people in the market hamlet in particular and the villages of Tri Le commune in general are increasingly better. The agricultural products that the people produce are always sold out, many customers in Vinh even come to pre-order but there are not enough products. These are the positive results that economic models such as passion fruit, sugarcane, cage fish farming, two-crop rice... bring to the people. This year, people will have a warmer and happier Tet than in previous years.

Quynh Lan - Pham Bang