In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age
of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this
financially independent lifestyle, they invite you
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Saigon Flower
Market
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

Location of Ho Ky Thi
flower market
There is a very narrow web
of alleyways call Ho Ky Thi which is off the larger street Le Thai To in
District 10. This is the flower market of Saigon, and if you didn't know it was
there, you could easily miss it.
I will
tell you ahead of time that I do not know the names of many flowers. But not
knowing the names did not lessen my joy at seeing such colorful splendor!

Shop after shop with
flowers
Each shop is in front of
individual homes and the alleyways are narrow, just wide enough for motorcycles
to pass through. No car would fit!
The people of Saigon live
in narrow laneways off the major streets. This was a true neighborhood of
Vietnam where the local people lived and these are the shops in which they
worked.

Beautiful packaged fresh flowers
There were all sorts of buckets and bouquets
of fresh flowers. You could get just about any color and shape of flower you
desired.

A woven arrangement of orchids
Artistic display is important and great
attention to detail is given. Orchids are everywhere. They available in lots of
colors and many types are native to Vietnam. Compared to what prices they bring
in the States, they are amazingly cheap here. A small orchid plant with a few
shoots on it will only cost you a couple of dollars.

Dozens of roses already wrapped for
purchase
Roses in colors of red, orange, tangerine,
peach, pink and white are wrapped in these corrugated cardboard cylinders. Makes
for a beautiful front-of-the-store arrangement.

A spray of white flowers
These white flowers show a lot of action and
energy when displayed in a spray. The best time to go to the Ho Ky Thi market is
in the earlier part of the morning when flowers are fresh before the heat of the
day gets to them.

Palm leaves and other greenery set of this
white and yellow arrangement
The dark green set against this bright yellow
mum and white floral display was beautiful. You can also purchase baskets and
vases here which are made from bamboo or ceramics. You may also choose your
flowers and have them arranged.

Individually protected
Each flower here is wrapped separately for
the protection of its individual daisy-like petals.
Selling flowers is a major industry in
Vietnam. Most delicate flowers come from Dalat due to its consistent year-round
climate. It is often referred to as the Paris of the East. Brightly colored
flowers such as these are exported to Europe and Japan

Fresh!
These flowers remind me of
an Easter display.
Tropical flowers are grown
in the southern part of Vietnam.

Rose bouquet
These roses are ready to
burst.

Another spray of flowers
Could anything be more yellow or tropical
looking?

Individually wrapped bouquets
This woman is picking out a multicolored
bundle of flowers amidst packed buckets of choices.
Even though the best time to purchase flowers
is in the mornings, the area is a hotspot from about midnight to sunrise. This
is when dozens of trucks rush to the market with thousands of flower boxes from
both Ha Noi and Dalat cities.

More choices
Each home style shop seemed
to sell a different selection of flowers and we wandered in between the colors.
Ho Ky Thi is considered the biggest flower market in town, and most locals know
about it. Foreigners could easily miss this market because it's sort of hidden
away from the main streets.

Flower man on bicycle
Home delivery!
What a fun sight to see in
the city of Saigon! Have you seen anything like this in your home town?
For more stories and photos
about Vietnam, click
here

About the Authors
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli are
recognized retirement experts and internationally published authors on
topics of finance, medical tourism and world travel. With the wealth of
information they share on their award winning website RetireEarlyLifestyle.com,
they have been helping people achieve their own retirement dreams since
1991. They wrote the popular books, The
Adventurer’s Guide to Early Retirement and Your
Retirement Dream IS Possible available on their website
bookstore or
on Amazon.com.
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