Buoi Market

06:42' 26/06/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge - Located in Yen Thai Village, Buoi Ward, Tay Ho District, an area once famous for traditional crafts such as papermaking, silk weaving, malt cooking, mulberry growing, etc, the Buoi Market is one of a few markets in Hanoi retaining its tradition of special market days on the auspicious 4th and 9th days of each lunar month. It was once the place where people from different craft villages gathered and exchanged their goods. As described in ancient documents, the Buoi Market consisted of 15 stalls selling different kinds of paper made by villagers in the Ke Buoi area, including tissue paper from Yen Thai Village, inferior tissue paper from Ho Khau Village, litmus paper from Dong Xa Village and xe paper from Yen Hoa Village. Also, many kinds of farming tools, such as ploughs, hoes, spades, etc., were also sold at the market to serve farmers in neighbouring areas. Other products, such as An Phu malt, Xuan Dinh confectionary, Vong green rice flakes, were available in the market. Store owners from Hanoi often go to the market to buy products to resell in their shops. Candy made in Lu Village is a popular item. Children of all ages enjoy the tasty keo bot (flour candy), keo vung (sesame candy), keo lac (peanut candy), popcorn and rice crisps sold by an elderly lady with black teeth and wearing a triangular kerchief on her head. Other goods can be found at the market, such as shrimp and fish from the Red River and West Lake, vegetables from many villages nearby the To Lich and Nhue Rivers and specialities from other parts of the country. Probably the most sought after items on sale at the market are various kinds of fruit trees, flowers and ornamental Plants from famous villages around the West Lake , like Yen Phu, Nghi Tam, Quang Ba, Nhat Tan, Tay Tuu and Phu Thuong. On auspicious days, the number of seedlings is tenfold that of regular days. Therefore, one can find any seedling of beautiful flowers, such as rose, lily, climbing rose, jasmine, hibiscus, etc, fruit trees such as Xuan Dinh sapodilla, Canh orange, Dien grapefruit or even shade trees. With its typical features, Buoi Maket is, indeed, an interesting place attracting a lot of Hanoians. (Source: Viet Nam Net)