Shopping in Hue City, Vietnam, is one of the exciting activities that you have to do when visiting this city. There are a lot of souvenirs that you can only find in Hue, and you may bring them home. Talking about shopping, you may want to check local products and places to buy them, so this article will give you details.
1. Local food that you can carry
Hue City is very famous for local food, which you can taste directly here, such as Bun Bo Hue, Com Hen, Banh Beo, Banh Nam, and Banh Khoai (Hue Pancake). Besides, many food products can contain and bring them home as souvenirs to your friends and relatives.
- Lotus seeds can be considered as the pearls of lakes. They become good food when you cook them with sugar as sweet soups. These seeds are dry and collect in strings that are easy to carry. You can buy this at Dong Ba Market.
- Sesame candy is one of the top typical local foods in Hue City, Vietnam. The sweets are made of the main ingredients of sesame, peanuts, sugar, and sticky rice, so you may taste this candy as snacks on your buses, flights, or trains. You can find this at most of the souvenir shops, supermarkets (Big C, Vincom, or Coopermark), and markets such as Dong Ba, Ben Ngu, and Tay Loc Market in Hue City.
- Shrimp sauce (Mam Tom) is also on the list of exceptional food that can be carried. However, this sauce is really smelly and fishy, so it seems to be suitable for Vietnamese guests, although we introduce it here with the hope of letting foreign tourists know about this food. Dong Ba Market still is the top shopping place to buy shrimp sauce, and the Co Ri shop near the meat area is one of the popular destinations to check.
2. Handicraft souvenirs of Hue
Many handicraft products are made in Hue City, Vietnam. From small products to heavy ones, such as bronze bells, are diverse for your choice.
- Phan Nu (Beautiful powder) is made from natural herbs according to the formula of royal doctors during the Nguyen Dynasty. With 100% natural products, and no chemicals, many ladies and girls in Hue as well as in Vietnam like to use it for their beautiful and smooth faces and skins. You can find at Phan Nu Ba Tung at 34 Tô Hiến Thành, Phú Cát Ward, Hue City.
- Non La (Vietnamese conical hat) is a product used by girls when they wear Ao Dai – the traditional Vietnamese dress. During hot days in Hue, a Non La is useful to help you get the shape to avoid sunburn. Nowadays, Non La is used as a typical handicraft for decoration. You can choose this hat at many local markets: Dong Ba and Ben Ngu, especially, Da Le Market (at Nguyen Tat Thanh Street, Thuy Phuong, Huong Thuy, Hue – see its map ) is a top place to sell the conical hat in Hue.
- Bronze products are famous in Phuong Duc, Hue City. This village is located on the south bank of the Perfume River, 3 km from Hue city center. The craftsmen here have cast a lot of bronze products, including royal urns, Thien Mu bells, worshipping things, and heroes’ statues. Nowadays, artistic works can be found on this site. You can visit and buy this kind of product at many shops along Bui Thi Xuan Street, (Phuong Duc ward, Hue City), or come directly to the center showing bonze products of Phuong Duc, at 247 Bui Thi Xuan, Phuong Duc, Hue City. See its map.
3. Embroidery and painting
Hue owned an art university, so many talented people in art grew up in this land. Thanks to the influence of the royal style, the female people in Hue inherit skills to become famous craftswomen in embroidery.
- Many embroidery photos tell about life, describing beautiful natural sightseeing, and showing the beauty of the people. You can buy them at embroidery shops in Phan Dinh Phung street, or near the main gate of Thien Mu Pagoda.
- Paintings in Hue have a different style, from standard works to skillful masterpieces. Many painters, who are the children of Hue, have become famous around the world, such as Ton That Dao (painting: The Maiden and Lotus, painted in 1946), Do Ky Hoang (“Quiet Plateau,” lacquer composed in 1975), or Le Ba Dang.
However, actually, to find the top masterpieces of Hue authors is too hard at present, these works have traveled around the world. Luckily, paintings of Le Ba Dang are still protected at this private gallery at Thien An Hill and 15 Le Loi Street, Hue City. Also, you can see standard paintings at some galleries at a few shops on Chu Van An Street or Le Loi Street.
4. Tips to go shopping in Hue City
+ Bargain a lot in Dong Ba Market, but usually for industrial products, less or not bargaining for food, but
+ Not bargain at supermarkets, but at a few shops, I often ask them if they can discounts,
+ Not bargain for artworks, such as paintings,
+ Check a price online in advance to know the level of negotiation, do not do this when you are at the shops,
+ Check the date expiry carefully before you buy any products, especially with food and drinks,
+ Just purchase any products with an explicit name.
With suggestions of local products above, we hope you can find some favorite souvenirs to buy and bring them back home. These artifacts may contribute to your pleasant journeys in Hue City, and give you more valuable experiences, and good memories about the land of the ancient imperial palaces.
