Cho Tan Binh

I have always wanted to visit Cho Tan Binh - didn't have a chance till today when I dropped by Cassie's booth at the Beauty Fair at the HCMC International Exhibition and Commerce Centre - 466, Hoang Van Thu St, Tan Binh District. ("Cho" means "Market" in Vietnamese; normally referring to local markets - both wet and dry.) Met Tony Kim there too - told Cassie he looked familiar - yeah, sure, she said - because he was an actor in MediaCorp before. No wonder.

Cho Tan Binh is about 15-20 minutes walk from the exhibition centre. It is not as big as Cho An Dong (the old one in Chinatown) and the layout is different as the market spreads out behind the main building to fill quite an area. Saw some stalls selling wedding gowns, fabric, accessories for making clothes (like labels, buttons etc), a wet market - lots of different trades there. It's worth a visit - bought a belt for 50k, a child's hat for 30k and 300g of huge golden raisins for 30k.

Cho Tan Binh is along Ly Thuong Kiet Street

Another view of the market

At the back of the building

...are rows of shops outside, and more inside...