Fishing port bustling every morning
According to records of Lao Dong Newspaper reporters, these days, along the coast in communes and wards such as Sam Son, Nam Sam Son, Hoang Tien, Hoang Thanh, Tien Trang... everywhere you can see the scene of rafts and small boats connecting to go to sea to catch fish.
After the sea trip, rafts and small boats connect to the shore. On the boat compartment, white, opaque, shiny sea jellyfish lie densely. Each batch of jellyfish is quickly brought to the sand beach, creating a familiar bustling scene of the coastal villages during the exploitation season.
On the sand beach, groups of women quickly transport jellyfish, wash seawater and classify them for traders. Their hands work non-stop, their mouths are still chattering. The salty smell of the sea, the sound of waves crashing and the hurried pace of labor blend together, creating a vivid picture of a morning at the estuary.
This time is the peak sea jellyfish exploitation season - a seafood likened to "white gold of the sea" - so the atmosphere at the fishing ports becomes even more bustling. In just a few minutes after the boats dock, hundreds of jellyfish have been quickly transferred to the beach by women to prepare for the preliminary processing and consumption stages.
March 8 quietly passes
Also because it is the seafood harvest season, women in the coastal area are always busy with work. For them, March 8th also passes like any other day, without flowers, and without bustling congratulations.
Sharing with a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dinh (52 years old, residing in Nam Sam Son ward, Thanh Hoa province) said that as a small trader selling seafood in the coastal area, not only her but many other women rarely think about March 8th.
“When I was a girl, sometimes we even thought about, inviting friends to gather for parties or go out somewhere for fun. But for decades, since getting married, life has been full of worries, making us not pay attention anymore. Just hoping to work hard enough to eat, take care of our children is good enough” - Ms. Dinh shared.
Sharing the same feeling, Ms. Le Thi Dien (resident in Nam Sam Son ward, Thanh Hoa province) said that every year, March 8th for women attached to the fishing profession is the same as other normal days.
Her work starts from early morning going to sea to fish and pick up jellyfish. By noon, the boat docks, jellyfish are sold to traders. In the afternoon, she and her family repair fishing gear, preparing for the next sea trip.
To be honest, saying I don't think about March 8th is not right. Every woman wants to be with her husband, children, have a delicious meal or a few congratulations. But life is still difficult, so I have to put it aside to take care of my family first" - Ms. Dien confided.
Records on March 8 in many sea areas in Thanh Hoa show that fishermen are still rushing out to sea to exploit sea jellyfish. On the sand beach, women are still constantly washing, separating and preliminarily processing jellyfish to sell to traders in time.
In this seaport, amidst the sound of waves and the busy pace of labor, International Women's Day seems to pass quietly. For many coastal women, the simplest joy is still each boat full of fish, each day of labor enough to support their families.
