Northern highlands decked out in spring colors

By Huynh Phuong February 3, 2021 | 12:10 am PT

Photographer Nguyen Huu Thong captures the vibrant daily life in Vietnam's northern highlands during spring.

Mu Cang Chai, a far-lung retreat in Yen Bai Province, is popular with locals and foreign tourists for its golden rice terraces in Septemberand October each year. But from late December until January, the district puts on a new outfit with pinky peach blossoms blanketing the northern highlands area.Peach blossoms have five pink petals with long red pistils, blooming in clusters until Lunar New Year Festival, or Tet, considered the biggest and most important festival in Vietnam. They are mainly planted in the poverty-stricken La Pan Tan Commune.

Mu Cang Chai, a far-lung retreat in Yen Bai Province, is popular with Vietnamese and foreign tourists for its golden rice terraces in September and October each year. From late December until January, the district puts on a new outfit with pink peach blossoming.
Peach blossoms have five pink petals with long red pistils, blooming in clusters until the Lunar New Year Festival, or Tet, Vietnam's biggest holiday that peaks on Feb. 12 this year. They are mainly planted in poverty-stricken communes of La Pan Tan, Nam Khat, Pung Luong and De Xu Phinh.

A HMong mother and two her children in the middle of a white plum forest at Phieng Canh Village of Moc Chau District in Son La Province.

A H'mong mother and her two children in a white plum forest in Phieng Canh Village of Moc Chau District, Son La Province.

Women from the Lo Lo ethnic minority group laugh amid a field of buckwheat flowers along the hillside of Lung Cu Commune in Dong Vanm the capital town of Ha Giang Province. Year-end is the time when ethnic communities in the northern highlands harvest buckwheat, a type of grain commonly used to make cakes and wine.

Women from the Lo Lo ethnic minority smile amid a field of buckwheat flowers along the hillside of Lung Cu Commune in Dong Van District of Ha Giang Province.
Year-end is the time when ethnic communities here harvest buckwheat, a type of grain commonly used to make cakes and wine.

Thong shared that the photo that left a lot of emotions for him when he worked was a boys cheeks next to a cluster of yellow rapeseed flowers at Sung La, located on Highway 4C, connecting Yen Minh with Dong Van Plateau in Ha Giang.

Thong, a 24-year-old native of Bac Giang Province, said the photo that made the biggest impression on him depicted a boy's cheeks next to a cluster of yellow rapeseed flowers at Sung La. The commune is located on Highway 4C, connecting Yen Minh District with Dong Van Plateau in Ha Giang.

Around 160 kilometers from the center of Ha Giang, a northern mountainous province bordering China, Dong Van, a small, quiet town located in a valley surrounded by rocky cliffs, is home to a mixed community of Tay, Nung and HMong that can be found tending their terraced fields from April to May.

Around 160 kilometers from the center of Ha Giang, which borders China, Dong Van, located in a valley surrounded by rocky cliffs, is home to a mixed community of Tay, Nung and H'mong.

Dao girls harvest bamboo poles in Bao Lac District, west of Cao Bang Province which borders China.

Dao girls harvest bamboo poles in Bao Lac District, west of Cao Bang Province which also borders China.

A peaceful afternoon with herds of horses on the prairie Huu Lung Commune in Lang Son Province.

A peaceful afternoon with herds of horses on Huu Lung Commune prairie in Lang Son Province.

Calligraphers write calligraphy couplets on red paper in Tho Ha Village of Viet Yen District in Bac Giang province.Calligraphers are dressed similar to ong do, an archaic term for those who passed academic exams under Vietnam’s old imperial regime. These scholars were usually teachers and adept in Chinese.

Calligraphers write couplets on red paper in Tho Ha Village of Viet Yen District, Bac Giang Province.
Calligraphers are dressed similar to ong do, an archaic term for those who passed academic exams under the country’s old imperial regime. These scholars were usually teachers and adept in Chinese.