After a 60 km drive west of Hanoi we were taken to Duong Lam village in Ha Tay Province. An ancient village of immense charm and character steeped in Vietnamese history which, as you would expect, presented ample opportunities for the group to take some amazing photos.
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The village is located in beautiful surroundings of rice fields and a mountain in the distance.
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A seemingly un-used building just outside the village which I imagine was used for storing tools or fertilizer keeping it out of the rain.
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We came across this elderly lady sitting on the edge of the road making tooth picks to sell. Her face full of charm, character and expression, told the endless tales of her years. She had one black tooth and was happily chewing on beetle-nut which may have been the reason she was smiling. I only wish we could have understood her language to hear the stories she would have told us.
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Making our way into the village we walked past the local primary school. The children ran to the window and shouted ‘hellos’ to us passing by. All full of joy and smiles, however, not reflected in the above photo of this young boy who was probably taking a moment to wonder what we were all doing. In the background I could hear the teacher shouting at the children, I would expect telling them to sit down and get back to their studies.
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The front room of a shop keeper where we stopped for refreshments and a welcome break in the humid heat. Notice the photograph of the shopkeepers daughter taken on her wedding day which was pointed out to us with immense pride.
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One thing that I learned during this week-long trip was to find a great back drop and wait for something interesting to happen. Having found this narrow cobbled street, perfectly lit, it was only a short while until this young boy came along. He was excited to show us how well he could ride his cycle and I imagine he had only recently learned.
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