Meo Vac weekly market

Every Sunday morning, Meo Vac town fills up. People walk in from the communes around the district — some setting out before dawn, some riding in on motorbikes loaded with goods, a few leading livestock on ropes. By the time the light is full, the market is loud and busy: piles of vegetables on tarpaulins, bundles of dried tobacco, trays of silver jewellery, cheap electronics, fabric, tools, and the sharp smell of thang co — a traditional horse-meat stew that you will see simmering in large pots at several stalls.

Meo Vac market is one of the best-known highland markets on the Loop, partly because of its size and partly because it falls on Sunday, which suits most Loop itineraries. But it is not a market made for visitors. The people here are buying rice, selling a pig, getting a knife sharpened, catching up with relatives they have not seen in a week. They are dressed in everyday clothing as often as in traditional Hmong or Dao embroidery. The market exists because it is useful, and that is what makes it worth seeing — it is real.

Go early. By 6:30 the streets around the market are already filling, and the first two hours are the busiest and most interesting, when people are arriving and the trading is fresh. By late morning it starts to thin out, and by noon most people have packed up and headed home.

Photography is tempting — the colours, the faces, the textures of highland life — but ask before you point a camera at someone. Many people, especially older women, do not want to be photographed. Buy something from a stall before you start taking pictures. A bowl of pho, a bag of fruit, a small tool — it is both good manners and a reason to slow down and actually be in the market instead of just passing through it.

If you are riding the Loop over a weekend, Meo Vac market is easiest to catch by staying in Meo Vac on Saturday night. The town has enough places to stay, and waking up already there means you can walk into the market at first light without rushing.

Thang co is worth trying if you are open to it. The stew is a Hmong tradition — slow-cooked horse meat with organs and herbs — and the flavour is strong. It is served in small bowls, usually with rice wine on the side. Some stalls serve a milder version with beef. If you are not sure, sit down, point at what others are eating, and try a small bowl.