Shopping at the street markets

Nowadays, shopping at street markets still plays an important role in lifestyle of Vietnamese people. The way which they do shopping at street markets expresses how they live in their normal life. In fact, street markets are the face of popular trading in Vietnam.

Vietnamese people find that shopping at street markets has many advantages. Many people go shopping by motorbike, so it is very easy for them to stop at any stall or kiosk without parking their motorbikes. On the other hand, many street markets are next to residential areas, and people feel very convenient to go shopping on foot within a very short distance. They can choose their suitable meat, vegetables or something like that, negotiate the cost and then decide to buy or not. The time people manage their shopping there is very short, because salesmen and customers do not need a receipt for very daily things such as food. Furthermore, the food which is sold in street markets is fresher and cheaper than in supermarkets. If you are a tourist, you will see a colorful picture of Vietnamese life and will learn about its culture when you go through a street market. Shopping at street markets is very flexible, so in a dynamic and developing economy of Vietnam, it is the best choice.

However, shopping at street markets also has some disadvantages. Some street markets invade the pavement and even the traffic lanes. In rush hours, many people come home from work, they go shopping at street markets and contribute to traffic jams. The street markets are dirtier than supermarkets and the salesmen rarely care about keeping their stalls clean. Especially, the food is not always inspected with regard to hygiene. There a lot of pickpockets and cheaters in street markets but the victims cannot complain to anyone. The goods which are sold at street markets don’t have very high quality. Many fake goods are sold there but salesmen never admit that. Worse, some salesmen have very bad behaviors when customers do not want to buy after checking or complaining. Although there are many bad points, Vietnamese people still bear them.

In conclusion, I’d like to say that shopping at street markets in Vietnam has a long tradition in a rural country. People still go shopping like they did many centuries ago. If you learn about Vietnamese style of shopping, especially shopping at street markets, you will know about Vietnamese lifestyle really, really well.