A Walk through Cholon (19 images)

Cholon is Ho Chi Minh City's "Chinatown" district. In Vietnamese, "cho" means market and "lon" is large. Cholon is the largest market in Saigon. It started as a Chinese market and expanded until it became a Saigon suburb. In 1931, French colonial authorities changed the name of Saigon to Saigon-Cholon. In 1956, the "Cholon" was dropped and the city was once again just Saigon.