Vieng market, a spring festival deeply imbued with folk beliefs and culture of northern delta inhabitants, opens annually at midnight of the 7th till dawn of the 8th of the first lunar month in Nam Dinh province.
A large crowd of locals and tourists flocked to Vieng Market in Trung Thanh commune, Vu Ban district since the afternoon of February 11 (the seventh day of the first lunar month). Everyone went there to buy goods to pray for fortune and happiness
The market, typical to an agricultural countryside rich in natural specialties, is an open-air fair displaying a wide variety of goods, from local farm produce, especially speciality crops and ornamental plants, to sophisticated craft articles, ranging from daily utensils, bronze and steel tools, worship articles, antiques and imitation antiques, to jewellery and toys.
Market goers believe they will enjoy a new year full of luck and prosperity if they can buy or sell goods as early as possible, making the market a spiritual rather than commercial event. Every year, tens of thousands of people from across the northern part of the country flock to this market, trying to sell or buy an item right at midnight of the 7th day without considering prices.
Vieng market dissolves when the morning is dawning, leaving both joy and regret for goers who head for different parts of the country with a silent promise to return next year.-VNA
