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Shopping
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Generally speaking,
shops
open daily 10am to dusk, with some larger stores staying open beyond 8pm. For lacquerware, ceramics and other
handicraft souvenirs
, try Art Arcade at 151 Dong Khoi, Precious Oil at 27 Dong Khoi, Bich Lien at 125 Dong Khoi, or MIV, 26b Le Thanh Ton. Pure
silk ao dais
can be purchased at Nap, 63 Le Thanh Ton; they also specialize in embroidered wares as do Kim Phuong, 77 Le Thanh Ton, and Minh Huong at 85 Mac Thi Buoi. For
tailoring
, try Albert at 22 Vo Van Tan or Zakka at 134 Pasteur. For
paintings on silk
and
rice paper
, try Workshop Hai, 239 and 241 De Tham. Recommended picture galleries are Hoang Hac, 73 Ly Tu Trong, and Nam Phuong, 156 Dong Khoi. Phung Dinh, 120 Le Thi Hong Gam, specializes in Vietnamese musical
instruments
. Check out the booths inside the GPO and on Dong Khoi itself for old
coins
,
stamps
, notes and greetings cards featuring typical Vietnamese scenes. Ho Chi Minh's best
bookshops
are found on Dong Khoi - Bookazine at no. 28 and Xuan Thu at no. 185; Lao Dong, opposite the
Rex
at 104 Nguyen Hue, stocks a wide range of magazines and newspapers. The city's biggest
market
is Ben Thanh, at the junction of Tran Hung Dao, Le Loi and Ham Nghi, where you can find everything from conical hats, basketware bags, Da Lat coffee and Vietnam T-shirts to buckets of eels and heaps of pigs' ears and snouts. Cholon's equivalent is Binh Tay Market
, below Thap Muoi. If you're looking for American and Vietnamese army surplus, try Dan Sinh Market at 336 Nguyen Cong Tru. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Viet Nam,
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