41 Photos from the Mekong Markets at Dawn

fish market vietnam

I’m not even remotely a morning person, something that can be confirmed by just about anyone who has met up in the morning hours. Until I get a cup of coffee I’m fairly intolerable, my brain cobwebby and clunky. But there is one exception: morning markets. With swarms of people bustling about, gorgeous piles of fruit and vegetables and more food to eat than I know what to do with, I fly out of bed in anticipation of a market visit.

I posted a few photos from the Mekong Delta’s bright markets when I wrote about my very fun soup angel rescue mission in Cai Rang, one that finally resulted in a bowl of steaming hot bun rieu. It was hard to choose the photos for that post. A mere handful of pictures insufficiently conveys the glory of all that technicolor at dawn.

Photoessay from the Floating Markets of the Mekong Delta

Tourists head to the Mekong Delta specifically for the floating boat markets, among other things. In recent years, however, new suspension bridges and rebuilt roads have meant that market wares available only by boat are now accessible by land. While the floating market exists, I found that tourist boats closely numbered the local market boats in Cai Rang; what used to take up a huge swath of the river had narrowed considerably. In its place, the land markets ** were growing quickly, with residents buying a motorbike instead of a boat. According to Theu, who ran the guesthouse I stayed at (more about her soon!), a boat and a motorbike were roughly the same price in this part of Vietnam, and families were opting for motorbikes due to practicality, resilience and ease of use. It made sense, then, that the markets would shift with demand.

[** A small note on terminology. The land markets in Cai Rang are still referred to as “wet” markets because they comprise a wet part (for fruit, vegetables, meat and other produce, where the floor and stalls are literally doused with water to keep them clean) and a dry part where spices, dried goods and other foods and household products are sold. When people refer to a wet market in Asia, it is usually on land, whereas a floating market would be on a boat.]

What follows are a series of photos from the floating market at dawn, with soup sold boat-side and boats skewering their wares on spiked poles to indicate what they had for sale. In addition, there are photos from the Cai Rang wet market, a place most tourist boats skip on their return to Can Tho. Given that the land market was relatively untouristed, people were surprised to see me meandering around, buying dragonfruit and desserts and eating, eating, eating.

This photoessay is a small taste of the deliciously overwhelming, unique feeling of standing in the middle of what seems like total chaos and watching it move around you unperturbed. I know these markets are a normal part of life for people in the Mekong, and having seen similar versions of them during my travels, I am no stranger to their beauty. But no matter how many times I venture to the markets at dawn, I always find myself with a silly grin on my face, spinning in all directions to take in as much as I can.

* * *

Mekong Delta wet market Can Tho Mekong Vietnam
One of the first things you notice from the wet market boats is how they are effectively housing for long periods at a time. Clothes hanging, kitchens on the boat & the makings of general routine, floating on the water.
Wet market Can Tho Mekong Vietnam
Woman and her baby looking on as a boat drops off water near Cai Rang.
Wet market Can Tho Mekong Vietnam
Melon transaction on the Ong Tim river. Note the bright “eyes” on the front of the boat. Legend has it that they were to ward away creatures of the sea, though every person I asked had a different explanation (including “it’s pretty”).
Wet market Can Tho Mekong Vietnam
Boatside breakfast soup.
Wet market Can Tho Mekong Vietnam
Boatside breakfast soup, part two.
Wet market Can Tho Mekong Vietnam
One of my favourites: note the hands behind the hats — this kid was giggling madly then we waved at him and he dove behind the seat, cracking up the whole time.
Market Cai Rang Mekong Vietnam
Houses along the Ong Tim river on the boat ride to Cai Rang’s markets.
Cai Rang Market Vietnam
Approaching the land market in Cai Rang.
Cai Rang, Vietnam
On the bridge spanning the Ong Tim river.
Cai Rang Market Vietnam
Greens at dawn.
Cai Rang Market in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam
The land market at eye level.
Cai Rang Market in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam
Vegetable negotiations.
daikon at the floating market
Daikon never looked so good.
Cai Rang Mekong markets Vietnam
Nor did carrots, straight from the soil.
Cai Rang Mekong markets Vietnam
Fish aplenty.
fish at mekong delta markets
I thought these were cuter than all the rest.
mekong delta markets
Ready for cooking.
Cai Rang Mekong markets Vietnam
Betel nut has two varieties used in Vietnam. One – piper betle – is for chewing (as a mild stimulant) and the other – piper sarmentosum (la lot) is used in cooking, great wrapped around beef and grilled.
Cai Rang Mekong markets Vietnam
Chicken, stamped, plucked and ready for sale.
Cai Rang Mekong markets Vietnam
Dried fish. Why choose one when you can buy them all?
Cai Rang Market Vietnam
Interrupting her breakfast for a photo. How cute is she?
Market Cai Rang Mekong Vietnam
Breakfast number two (after that great bun rieu soup). Bun thit nuong, grilled pork served over vermicelli noodles.
Cai Rang Market Vietnam
Breakfast number three, stir fried noodles with pork and bean sprouts.
Sticky rice at Mekong Delta AM market
Sticky rice, an excellent snack.
Cai Rang Market Vietnam
Glutinous rice balls filled with sweet mung bean.
Cai Rang Market Vietnam
Mini black chickens, used for ga tan.
Ice cutting at Cai Rang Market
Sawing through ice blocks to distribute to vendors in the market.
banh bo at mekong delta
Banh bo, a light, sweet cake made with rice flour (and sometimes tapioca flour) and sweetened with honey.
banh bo at mekong delta
The banh bo vendors were two women, pointing to these gentlemen and saying “look at our husbands, eating while we make money for them”. (This is why the men are all cracking up while eating!)
cai rang market mekong delta
Fish and chilli, a perfect pair.
cai rang market mekong delta
No shortage of duck, quail and chicken eggs, including fertilized duck eggs, a popular snack in Vietnam (and in the Philippines).
Market Mekong Vietnam
Crispy pork, extremely enticing but sadly no room in my belly for breakfast number 4.
cai rang market mekong delta
Tofu in woven baskets.
cai rang market mekong delta
Loved the banh bao tin with its great typography.
Pigs for sale at Mekong Delta AM markets
Pig grooming 101.
Market Mekong Vietnam
Requisite up close pig grooming shot.
Market stall Mekong delta
This woman had cooked pig heads and wanted me to take a photo of her with them. Laughing and smiling, she got serious the second I started to take the shot, wanting to seem business-y for her close up.
Market negotiations Mekong delta
A transaction occurs….
Mekong Vietnam
…. while the men looked on right next door.
Mekong Vietnam
It’s not all fruit and vegetables, however. This was the trash piled into the water right next to the land market where we got on and off the boats. Bags, food, plastic and more.
Mekong Delta Vietnam
After 3 mornings of market eats, I was able to relax on an evening boat ride around the Ong Tim river, seeing the same canals that brought me to the markets, but at dusk.

More to come soon about the Mekong, including  the fabulous story of how the couple that ran my guesthouse met each other in Vietnam.

-Jodi

58 thoughts on “41 Photos from the Mekong Markets at Dawn”

  1. Incredible photos! Thank you for sharing. I’m in the process of planning an around the world trip to work with and write about organizations empowering women, and these photographs are an inspiration to capture what I observe visually, and not just with the written word. Bravo!

  2. I love how in these markets all the food is fresh and ready to be cooked, unlike in so many American supermarkets where everything is wrapped or boxed because it comes from so much further away. Beautiful photos of delicious looking food!

  3. OMG the photos! You’ve become quite the photographer Jodi! So inspiring! I inhaled this post from start to finish, thank you so much for sharing (:

    P.S. I live minutes away from a wet market and have never really thought much of it till now – but maybe I should follow my grandad the next time he hits up the wet market for a second look!

  4. Man, I miss Asian markets and street food! Everyone thinks that street food is unhygienic, but the truth is I’ve never gotten sick from it. More importantly, it’s always fresh.

    I never had stomach problems in Asia. The problems started when I came back to North America and was forced to eat processed foods that my stomach couldn’t handle.

    Ironically, it’s in North America where I’m scared to eat at the restaurants now.

  5. Hi Jodi – another great vicarious visit. The Mekong Delta means so many other things to those, like me, who where listening to the divergent versions of the war there from Voice of America and Radio Peking. Again, will post to Worlders.

  6. What a great set of photos! You really get a good vibe of the place through these shots. And your breakfast looks yummy too.

  7. Absolutely amazing pictures. I really want to go back to the Mekong again and have their food. Bring on the Pho!

  8. This photo album is just deliciously perfect! I can almost smell the air with a wrath of petrol, frangipani and coriander in it.

  9. Ah, the colors, grays, and pig heads of the Mekong. I’d have to say that nothing is more interesting than stamped chickens and birds so blue that the viewer worries about oxygen deprivation even though they’re dead.

  10. Great captures Jodi! I’ve noticed that these photos are much better than the ones in your earlier posts. :) Having just came back from a trip round Southeast Asia, I really like the composition in each photo and the captions which are so essential! A question comes to mind – do you still get the feeling sometimes that you are being ripped off when taking transportation (boats/tuktuks/taxis) since you’re a fa lang?

    1. No, I never felt that way, to be honest! I’d just negotiate the price and sure it was sometimes higher than the locals but not by much from my investigations. It’s a part of traveling, you can just negotiate to mitigate as best you can. ;)

  11. Love this. A lot of cooked food as well. I generally avoid wet markets for feeding (smells and bustle). Here I would have kept going to crispy pork belly… maybe a 5th. Thanks.

  12. Photos are absolutely amazing! My favourite has to go to the “Black Chickens”: very impressing composition, lightning and editing. I’ll for sure come back here for more :p

  13. I’m going to Vietnam soon, can’t wait! I almost feel like I’m there already looking at these stunning photos.

  14. Pingback: A Love Story in Vietnam's Mekong Delta | Legal Nomads

  15. Christoffer Moen

    Beautiful photos! It’s almost like I can smell, hear, taste all these strange, wondrous things from that faraway Vietnam floating market.Cheers!

  16. Lucky Balaraman

    Hope your eating brings you to Chennai, India, the home of some great South Indian cuisines.

    Lucky Balaraman

  17. Great photos but what disgusting polluters the people of the emerging world are! No interest in trying to keep their environment clean.

  18. Great photos. Scenery looks like that of Philippines. But Cebu’s lechon or Cebuchon in Philippines would much tastier!

  19. Fantastic photo essay. The colors, the light, the textures – just gorgeous. I am even more excited for my coming visit to Vietnam in February!

  20. Crap. I may have to move up my trip to Vietnam to March instead of May. You’re killing me with the yummy photos and food descriptions. I seriously miss the street eats in Asia at times. For now I need to find some decent Vietnamese food in Québec City – if that is even possible. LOL

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