Thanks to an influx of tourists, video montages and photo collections of Saigon from previous decades are not hard to come by, but visual recordings of Hanoi are few and far between.
This rare clip, filmed by an unknown author, provides a glimpse of life in the capital in 1974. Using muted colors, it offers insights into how Hanoians lived back in the day. It appears that local residents were as fascinated by the videographer as he or she was with them: a gaggle of passersby quickly gathered at the intersection to check out the stranger filming their city.
Hanoi in the 1970s was a town of bicycles, with few motorbikes seen. Cyclists at the time shared their commuting space with a tram network and the occasional train track here and there. Some shots in the vicinity of various lakes in town also show that, much like their descendants today, past Hanoians had a penchant for brisk walks along the lakes' borders and enjoying a cup of hot tea or two at al fresco drink stalls.
Enjoy a walk around Vietnam’s capital in 1974 via the short video below. And as there’s no sound, we recommend this cheerful acoustic track or this chill lofi cover as background music for your listening pleasures.
[Video via YouTube channel British Pathé]
