Did you know?- Unique markets in Hanoi

Naturally when you want to buy gemstones or jewellery, you will think about visiting a jeweller’s shop or a luxury store. But now you can buy at this nondescript market in Ha Noi, where all the items are checked for quality.

This market resembles a traditional market in Vietnam that sells foods, but this is special and different since it sells gemstones. The neat little market which is about 500 sq.m is located in Alley 456 on Hoang Hoa Tham Street in Cau Giay District. The market only opens once a week, every Sunday, from 8:00 A.M to 3 P.M

There are more than 30 stalls selling various kinds of jewellery and gemstone which are exploited from different places in Vietnam like: Yen Bai province, Nghe An province, Thanh Hoa province.

Sellers only need a table and a chair to set up a stall. On the other hand, the gemstones are displayed on plastic trays or a piece of card board so that buyers can examine the product carefully.

Prices vary depending on the material, quality and size of a gem from few dollars to more than thousand dollars. The most expensive one is ruby and the cheapest is black stone. The simplest way to classify the different kinds of gems is under a certain light. Natural precious stones have more sparkle than artificial ones. Under the light, the good stones are illuminated with shapes of stars; they are pure and do not have cracks.

Rediscover the old memories through an antique flea market in the heart of Hanoi. In a small space, crockery, porcelain bowls, oil lamps, watches, old phones, irons, copper strays, … thousands of ancient items will recall beautiful past memories.

Regularly, at 8.00 A.M every Saturday, lying in the slope of 456 in busy Hoang Hoa Tham street, the antique market for enthusiasts is gathered. With an area of about 400m2, but when coming here, collectors will relive the atmosphere of the old days through items that were so familiar in the subsidy period such as oil lamps, winding watches, brass wheels, Soviet pot.

The market has just over 20 stalls. Here, one can find countless things from antiques to old ones, from items introduced over a hundred years to the leftover items from the subsidy period.

The fair also has a number of stalls selling war memorabilia. Visitors to the market can find the belt of the military uniform or the specialized phone of the soldiers in the anti-American resistance war.

A salesman said that they had to take a lot of effort to find, to convince veterans from all over the country to collect these valuable items.

Hoang Hoa Tham Street, also referred to as Bonsai Street is about 3.320 meters long. The traditional market for flowers and ornamental trees on Hoang Hoa Tham Street, Hanoi, is increasingly hectic and bustling several days before the lunar New Year.

This market is one of three well-known Tet flower markets in Hanoi. Compared to the Hang Luoc and Quang Ba flower markets, the Tet atmosphere here comes sooner. This flower market opens all year round but it is the busiest before Tet.

Flowers and ornamental plants are displayed along the road, catching the eyes of passers-by. The shop owners – whether realising it or not – have created an artificial garden in the middle of one of Vietnam’s largest city.

With the chirping of the birds and the trees in pots on the footpath, with the blooming flowers. They are selling everything that is beautiful and cute. The street is full of florists selling flowers, nurseries selling other types of plants, there are stores just with birds, shops just with aquariums full of pet fish. Even a shop selling plastic buckets has them stacked and hanging in a way that looks like a burst of colours.