This is the place to find authentic combat boots, notes Lonely Planet, or indeed “rusty (and perhaps less authentic) dog tags” among the hardware stalls. There are also handy gas masks, field stretchers, rain gear, mosquito nets, canteens, duffel bags, ponchos, boots and flak jackets. Many of the items may be replicas, but “they still make cool souvenirs,” says The Culture Trip. “Among the maze of stalls, you will also come across propaganda art pieces here and there, such as coasters, posters, magnets, and Zippo lighters, featuring familiar propaganda symbols,” and if you’re lucky, “you’ll come across a Chairman Mao alarm clock.”
“Going around this offbeat market feels a bit like being an archaeologist,” says Sarah Cruz at Cush Travel. “You’ll never know what to find as you’ll have to search through hundreds of items to see what the market really offers,” and that can include “many little oddities such as rusty old lighters, dog tags, helmets and other equipment that make great keepsakes to bring home.” As she explains, “the Vietnam locals do not see the Vietnam-American War the same way as foreigners do … many have since realized that the war plays a huge part on how foreigners see Vietnam and decided to respond to this by making money out of it.”