The market for offerings on the Khai Ha ceremony is bustling.

Although Khai Ha day took place in the middle of the working week, it was cold and rainy, but from early morning, the traditional markets were quite crowded and bustling with people shopping for offerings. Especially at the shops and stalls selling votive paper, fresh flowers, fruits, betel and areca nuts, people jostled to shop.

According to records, at the markets, the items serving people to buy gifts for the holidays are rich and diverse, and the prices do not fluctuate much. Of which, fruit is the most popular item. The stalls are imported by traders with a variety of fruits in large quantities. Compared to the time before and during Tet, the prices of fruits have decreased slightly.

Accordingly, watermelon costs 30,000 VND/kg, lotus orange 50,000 VND/kg, Vinh orange 40,000 VND/kg, Cat Chu mango 60,000 VND/kg, custard apple 80,000 VND/kg, star apple 60,000 VND/kg, red dragon fruit 60,000 VND/kg... As for green bananas, the price has dropped sharply, only 50,000-70,000 VND/bunch; betel nut and areca nut are only 15,000 VND/plate;...

Ms. Nguyen Thi Luong, a fruit trader at Quan Lau market (Truong Thi ward, Vinh city) said: “Since yesterday afternoon (January 6), people have started buying offerings for the Khai Ha ceremony. Because it is just after Tet, instead of offering savory dishes, people choose to offer more fruits, so the goods are selling well. Compared to just before Tet, the price of fruits has decreased sharply, they are more diverse, abundant and fresh.”

Along with fruits, fresh flowers such as yellow chrysanthemums, white chrysanthemums... have strong consumption during this time. The current price of chrysanthemums is 4,000 - 6,000 VND/branch, a decrease of 2,000 - 3,000 VND/branch compared to the Lunar New Year. In the markets, chrysanthemums are sold a lot, mainly by gardeners who "missed Tet" so now they cut and sell to serve people in the Khai Ha ceremony, going to the pagoda, so the price is much cheaper than chrysanthemums imported from other places.

“Each large chrysanthemum or diamond chrysanthemum with 5-7 flowers costs only 3,000 VND/branch. The flowers have just been cut so they are very fresh. I choose to buy locally grown chrysanthemums instead of imported chrysanthemums from Da Lat because they are fresher, cheaper and I also want to support the growers,” said Ms. Thanh Thuy, a local.

The best-selling items on the opening day of the festival are sticky rice cakes, areca flower sweet soup, banh chung, ham, and ready-made chicken offerings. “Since Tet has just ended, the offerings for the opening day of the festival are simpler. People choose convenient savory and sweet dishes such as banh chung and ham. This morning alone (the 7th of the first lunar month), I sold 30 banh chung and 10kg of ham,” said Ms. Nguyen Thi Loan, who sells ham and banh chung at Coi market (Vinh city).

In particular, the service of preparing and delivering offerings at home is also very popular. Clean food stores, fruit shops, and many restaurants provide the service of preparing and delivering offerings to customers in need. Accordingly, the price of each chicken sticky rice set ranges from 350,000 to 500,000 VND; each complete offering (including: fruit, areca and betel, fresh flowers, tea, banh chung, ham, votive offerings) costs from 500,000 to 700,000 VND. This service is also quite popular because of its convenience.

“It’s a working day so I don’t have time to go to the market or cook. Therefore, to complete the Khai Ha ceremony, I chose to order a tray of offerings from a clean food store including sticky rice cakes, areca flower sweet soup, chicken sticky rice, and a tray of five fruits with chrysanthemums for 700,000 VND,” said Ms. Pham An Nhien, a civil servant in Vinh city.

The Khai Ha ceremony (lowering the flagpole) is also known by other names such as the flagpole lowering ceremony, the New Year thanksgiving ceremony, and the votive paper burning ceremony. After the Lunar New Year holiday, the Khai Ha ceremony (usually held on the 7th day of the first lunar month) is a ritual to send ancestors to heaven, to bid farewell to the gods to the underworld, and at the same time to express gratitude, to bless and protect the living world for good crops, favorable business, and prosperity in the new year. For business households, they pray for good sales.

Depending on the economic conditions as well as the customs and practices of each family and each region, the offering tray will be different, but everyone tries to prepare carefully to have a complete and neat offering.