Previously, the market was always packed with customers during the seventh lunar month.

Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Local traders said that this year’s Ram Thang Bay (full moon day of the seventh lunar month) was unusual because of impacts of Covid-19 pandemic. The number of buyers have dropped sharply.
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
However, the market is still full of various votive products for the death, including the latest designs.
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
The most popular products are votive villas, cars, tablets, gold bars, and clothes.
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Mrs. Nguyen Thi Lan, 65, said that every seventh lunar month, she goes to this market to buy votive products to offer her ancestors and wandering souls, and this year is no exception.

 

Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Votive products are abundant in size and prices, from a few tens of thousands to several hundred thousand dong.
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Some stores are still crowded but the sellers complain that sales are low compared to previous years.
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Small traders come here to buy votive products for wholesale and sell them again for retail.
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Some people are hired to pack products.

 

Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
Chợ 'âm phủ' Sài Gòn đìu hiu, ế khách
 
 

Phong Anh

Votive paper market appears quiet during ‘ghost month’

Votive paper market appears quiet during ‘ghost month’

The once-bustling Hang Ma street in the centre of Hanoi has fallen quiet amid ‘ghost month’, the seventh month of the Lunar Calendar, as a result of the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic.

During Covid-19, Vietnamese shop for votive objects online

During Covid-19, Vietnamese shop for votive objects online

In the age of the Internet, buyers can sit at home and use the phone or the computer, and votive products can easily be brought to their houses.