Pho Hue Marketplace, Hanoi
 
A colorful array of fresh fruits and vegetables are for sale at one of the many stands in this marketplace.  At such a market, one can buy everything from fresh fish & meat to fine silk fabric to plastic sandals to countless varieties of Vietnamese hot sauce.
Rice Paddy, Mai Chau

In this early morning photograph, the fog lifts over the rice paddy as a man and his waterbuffalo plow the field.  Rice is the primary crop of Vietnam and this South East Asian nation is one of the world's leading rice exporters.  When one enters a marketplace to buy rice, he or she will find countless different types of rice with varying quality, aroma, and grain length.
Rice Paddy, Mai Chau
  
This picture is of the same rice paddy pictured above.  When it comes to work in the paddy, men are responsible for plowing the fields while it is the responsibility of women to plant and harvest the rice.
Bicycle Parking Lot, Hanoi Expo Center 
 
The streets of hanoi are filled with bicycles.  These bicycles are parked at the Hanoi Expo Center in mid February, right before the tet holiday.  At the tet market, one will find dried fruit, snake wine, special crackers, and other gifts for the lunar new year celebration.
School Children at the Ho Chi Minh Museum, Hanoi
 
While visiting the Ho Chi Minh Museum, our group was greeted by a group of school children whom were also visiting the museum.  Despite limited resoruces, the school systems in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city have been remarkably successful in the last few years as evidenced by great increases in literacy rates.  Schools in rural areas, however, are often without sufficient recouces (teachers, books, classrooms) and are occasionally only thachted roof buildings.  Programs by the United Nations, the Vietnamese Government, and other non-government organizations are working to increase the quality and level of education in rural areas.
Fruit Stand, Hanoi 
 
Apples, mangoes, bananas, and pears are stacked in pyramids and sold by women either from shoulder baskets or from street-side fruit stands.  At 2,000 dong  (15 cents) for a bunch of 10 bananas, fruit is a tasty and inexpensive treat!
Pottery Factory,  

On a trip to Halong Bay, we stopped at a pottery village.  In this village, families had kilns and studios/factories in their home where they made their pottery.
Bac Ha Market 

At the Sunday morning market, women from the Flower Hmong ethnic tribe sell incense.  They are known as the Flower Hmong for their beautiful and colorful costumes.