Daily life in northern Vietnam was a little different over 100 years ago.
At the end of the 19th century, France replaced China as the major power in Vietnam. Under the new protectorate, Vietnam was divided into three territories: Tonkin (the north), Annam (the center), and Cochinchina (the south).
In 1901, Hanoi became not just the capital of Tonkin, but of all Indochina. Life in early 1900s Tonkin is depicted in yet another extraordinary album from Flickr user manhhai. On the empty streets of Hanoi were mainly barefoot pedestrians, as well as the occasional rickshaw. One can barely recognize Hoan Kiem Lake were it not for Turtle Tower in the background. The trees in the Botanical Garden were much smaller then, and cranes walked alongside people.
Besides the city, other areas of Tonkin also feature in the album. There are the mountain ranges of Lang Son and the old citadel in Bac Ninh. Fisherman pull nets onto the beaches of Do Son, and children swim freely in the rivers of Hai Phong.
Take a look below to see life in Tonkin at the beginning of the 20th century:
