It's three weeks from Tet and many streets in Hanoi have seen people busy buying peach and kumquat bonsai trees for Tet decorations.
Traders display the trees along many streets and have to set up tents to watch them at night.
A trader, Nguyen Chi Cong, 26, said that he has brought over 100 kumquat trees to sell on the pavement of Nguyen Khanh Toan Street for 10 days. "We can’t bring them home but have to set up tents to guard them at night," Cong said. "It's really hard having to stay here at night during this chilly weather, but we have to try."
Like many other traders, Cong sets up a fire besides his tent to keep warm. He shared that sales have been slower this year than in previous years.
"We've sold around 10 trees a day," he said. "Many people are just browsing or bargaining at too low prices which we can’t accept. Maybe the economic downturn is making people tighten their belts."
Many traders are also staying up overnight to guard their bonsai trees being displayed on the roadside of Lac Long Quan Street.