Buzz
Thung Khe is a treacherous mountain pass, covered in fog and clouds year-round. At the peak of the pass lies a very interesting market, often called the cloud market, selling the specialties of Northwest Vietnam.
Explore the cloud market at Thung Khe Pass to enjoy the specialties of Northwest Vietnam
Thung Khe Pass (Hoa Binh) is one of the most treacherous mountain passes in Vietnam, along with O Quy Ho, Khau Pha, Ma Pi Leng, Pha Din... It not only attracts 'silk-road drivers' seeking to conquer its dangerous slopes but also captivates adventurous travelers as it features a cloud market at the peak of the pass.
Initially, the market was not formed, just a piece of land for the vehicles traveling to Northwest Vietnam to stop and rest. When Mai Chau (a district in the north of Hoa Binh province, about 130 kilometers from the center of Hanoi) became a homestay tourism destination, the Mai Chau route was always bustling with passenger cars.
Along that route, Thung Khe Pass is an interesting stopping point with a small, self-organized market. That's when local people come to the rest area, selling agricultural products, then food, and meals... to earn extra income for their families.
Moc Chau is almost cold all year round, with high mountains always covered in fog, especially in winter, so Thung Khe market has been called 'cloud market' by many romantic travelers. In addition to selling products from the Moc Chau mountains and forests, the market is also a place for long-distance travelers to stop and rest, enjoying a boiled corn or a tube of bamboo rice, grilled meat... The best thing about this market is that while eating, tourists can freely admire the scenery from the high peak of the pass down to the valleys below.
In the highland market, everything is local produce so it's very delicious. The boiled corn is fragrant and chewy because it's fresh corn just picked from the fields. The bamboo rice is cooked from fragrant rice so it's very chewy and fragrant. There are also wild vegetables, honey, pickled bamboo shoots, fatty pork and many specialties of Northwest Vietnam to take back to the lowlands as gifts for the family.
For many tourists, it's really interesting to chat with the vendors who speak Kinh language poorly like foreigners... and receive their friendly smiles whether customers buy anything or not. That's why stopping at this cloud market, among the friendly locals, in the beautiful and fresh Moc Chau forest landscape, even though Thung Khe is cold all year round, visitors still feel very warm-hearted. And before leaving, they have already planned to come back.
Source: Phunuonline
***
Source: Mytour Travel Handbook
MytourJuly 21, 2015
