Binh Tay Market, Cholon

Binh Tay Market is a 1928 Chinese-style wholesale market at 57A Tran Binh Trong in Ward 2, District 6, in the Cholon district of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, about 6 km south-west of Ben Thanh Market. The building is arranged around a central courtyard with a small clock tower and a pond, surrounded by a double-height roofline of yellow walls and green-and-ochre ceramic ornament. Photographers get two distinct frames: the courtyard and roofline, which suit wide-angle shots with the clock tower as the anchor, and the interior aisles of dried goods, spices, herbs and household wares, where vendors stack goods in high, colourful pyramids. Light is best in the early morning from about 06:00 to 09:00, when wholesale trade is busiest and daylight falls softly through the roof openings; by midday, the aisles are dim and hot. The dry season from December to April is the most comfortable, while the wet season can bring heavy afternoon rain. The market is far less touristed than Ben Thanh, so crowds are mostly local traders, and a polite request before portraits is usually welcomed. Tripods are impractical and may block porters moving goods; hand-held shooting with a fast prime is the norm. Drones are restricted in the city. There is no entry fee. Traders use handcarts and motorbikes through the aisles, so photographers should keep to the sides. Restrooms and water are available in the market and nearby cafes along Hau Giang and Tran Binh Trong streets. Combining the market with Thien Hau Pagoda makes an efficient Cholon morning.