Tha La fish market (Cay Cham hamlet, Vinh Te commune, Chau Doc city, An Giang province) is also known as "ghost market" because it operates at night, from around 3am to nearly 6am the same day during the flood season.
At this special market, no one can see each other’s faces clearly; buyers hold flashlights to choose fish, while sellers carry flashlights on their heads to weigh fish and count money. In low flood years, the “ghost market” is deserted.
This year, the flood was big, fish came to the fields to breed a lot, fishermen in the upstream area of An Giang caught a lot of shrimp and fish, so the "ghost market" Tha La was somewhat more bustling.
Buying and selling freshwater fish at Tha La "ghost market" in Cay Cham hamlet, Vinh Te commune, Chau Doc city (An Giang province). Photo: Cong Mao - VNA
The "stars" at night in the underworld market during the flood season
As a “promise” of nature, every year, from July to the end of October of the lunar calendar, the West enters the flood season, bringing alluvium and many natural products. This is also the time when the Tha La “rice market” - the largest freshwater and river fish market during the flood season at the border source in An Giang - also becomes bustling.
Down on the river, people were busy scooping fish and sorting them into baskets, while merchants on the shore were quickly weighing fish and calculating money. The sounds of laughter and greetings seemed to dispel the darkness.
At around 3am, the Tha La “ghost market” begins to gather. After a night of fishing, people take the opportunity to bring fish and shrimp to the market to sell, so the entire 50m stretch of Cay Chau Street from the foot of Tha La Bridge is always bustling, with people calling each other to weigh fish and bargain as if cutting through the night. Next to the market are a few small stalls and a few low grocery stores, but they are always bustling.
In the dark of night, the sound of motorboats rattling from the distant fields headed towards the market wharf. The traders gathered around, asking the boat owners what kind of fish they caught late at night. Each person chose their own portion of fish and eels, weighed each type, and paid the fishermen.
The buying and selling of fish on each boat only takes about 20 minutes. They don't need to bargain or ask questions because each fishing boat only sells one type of fish to its regular customers.
In the dim night, from afar, the flashlights at Tha La market look like shining stars in the night. At around 6am, when the sun has just risen, people’s faces can be seen clearly, which is when the market closes.
Wild fish caught by locals in the flooded fields during the explosive water season in An Giang are sold at the Tha La "ghost market". Photo: Cong Mao - VNA.
Quickly selecting large, evenly sized snakehead fish into a plastic basin to weigh and sell to customers, Ms. Tran Thi Bich (living in Vinh Te commune, Chau Doc city, An Giang province) said that the Tha La "ghost market" was formed about 30 years ago, when people living along the canal and making a living by catching local seafood gathered spontaneously.
At first, there were only a few people selling garden vegetables, water lilies, fish and shrimp. Gradually, more traders developed and the market became more crowded.
Since midnight, local people have been visiting the market, catching fish, and then bringing them back to sell to customers. Thanks to this market, people who work as “silver hunters” do not have to work hard to transport fish far away to sell.
According to Ms. Bich, the market here sells all the "specialties" of the flood season such as: linh fish, snakehead fish, perch, chot fish, thieu fish, khoai fish, long tong fish, eels, loaches... caught by people in flooded fields such as: Thoi Son, Nhon Hung (Tinh Bien town), Vinh Te (Chau Doc city)...
In the past, more than 100 small boats and canoes came to weigh fish every night. Now, there are not as many fish and shrimp as before, so trading activities have decreased. However, the "ghost" market is an indispensable part of the flood season.
A bunch of linh fish, a specialty of the flood season in the West, at the "ghost market" Tha La, Vinh Te commune, Chau Doc city (An Giang province). Photo: Cong Mao - VNA
Having been trading at Tha La market for nearly 20 years, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhi (residing in Nhon Hung ward, Tinh Bien town) said that the Tha La "ghost market" operates year-round, but is busiest during the flood season.
At this time, every day there are dozens of fishing boats and canoes from the localities bringing seafood to sell. Small traders also come here in large numbers, everyone tries to come early to choose fresh fish to buy, then bring them to markets in neighboring localities to sell for profit.
Flood season products association
In recent years, river and freshwater fish are not as abundant as before, so buying and selling activities at the market have also decreased; however, every day there are still many traders coming here to buy and sell specialties of the flood season in the West such as: linh fish, vinh carp, catfish, perch, snakehead fish, loach, hemibagrus, sac fish, frogs... and then bring them to sell throughout the provinces and cities in the Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City.
Mr. Le Van Phuc (living in Chau Doc, An Giang province) - a small fish buyer at Tha La market said that every day, he and his wife come here early to choose fresh fish to bring back to big markets in Chau Doc and Long Xuyen to sell to customers to make a little profit.
“I have to go early to get fresh fish. If I go late, there won’t be any fish left to choose from, and it will be harder to sell when I get home. After doing business for a long time, everyone gets to know each other, so I don’t have to bargain much when buying or selling,” Phuc shared.
Selling freshwater fish at the "ghost market" - Tha La market, Cay Cham hamlet, Vinh Te commune, Chau Doc city (An Giang province). Photo: Cong Mao - VNA
According to Mr. Phuc, before he had to go by truck, buying tons of fish every night, but now, every night he can only buy nearly a hundred kilograms of various types of fish, mainly specialties of the flood season such as linh fish, ket fish, tre fish, loach fish, thieu fish, khoai fish, perch fish, snakehead fish... to supply to some customers in Can Tho and Ho Chi Minh City.
Holding in his hand more than 1 million VND from selling 30 kg of snakehead fish, climbing perch and tilapia - the result of a night of soaking in the water, setting traps and fishing, Mr. Nguyen Van Tai (Nhon Hung ward, Tinh Bien town, An Giang province) excitedly boasted: this year the flood water inundating his fields is almost a meter larger than last year, so the fish in the fields have bred quite a lot, thanks to that, fishermen like him have a little more money to spend on their family and pay for their children's education.
The “ghost market” not only has shrimp, crab, frog and freshwater fish of all kinds, but also many other products of the flood season, such as ghost water lily (wild water lily), dien dien (sedge sesban), rau nhut (water spinach)… all of which have become unique highlights in the culture of the West, reflecting the richness of aquatic resources during the flood season.
Source: https://danviet.vn/cho-ma-tha-la-o-an-giang-hop-nua-dem-tren-troi-toi-om-duoi-la-liet-ca-dong-ngon-duoi-anh-den-pin-20241026231041963.htm
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