Located in Pu Luong commune, Thanh Hoa province, Pho Doan market, also known as Pho Don market, was formed during the French colonial period and is one of the oldest highland markets in the locality.
The market meets on Thursday and Sunday mornings every week, from about 6 am and lasts until nearly noon. This is where people from communes such as Pho Doan, Co Lung, Lung Cao, Trung Thanh... bring agricultural products, food and goods to exchange and trade.
Currently, the market has been renovated and spacious with an area of about 2,000m2. The temporary palm leaf roofs of the past have been replaced by a solid corrugated iron roof system, creating more favorable conditions for trading activities.
Although the appearance has changed a lot, the market fair still retains the typical atmosphere of the highlands. Here, it is easy to see images of people carrying baskets carrying corn, vegetables, sticky rice or pumpkins to the market.
The stalls in the market sell many local products such as Co Lung duck, stream fish, forest rats and familiar spices from the mountains such as mac khen, doi seeds. Among them, mac khen is a commodity that many people look for to buy.
The gift and cake area inside the market also attracts many people with hot sticky rice cakes, fried cakes, and banh cuon. Not only inside, the area along both sides of the road to the market is also bustling with buyers and sellers. Agricultural products, food, and clothing stalls follow each other, highlighted by brocade stalls bearing the imprint of the highlands.
Each fair seasons with more seasonal products such as wild vegetables, strange fruits, sour bamboo shoots or newly made tofu. This change creates a unique feature for Pho Doan fair.
Not only is it a place to exchange goods, the market also contributes to preserving the cultural and living features of the Pu Luong highland people. From the market area, visitors can also combine visiting Hieu village and Hieu waterfall located nearby.
