Hanoi, HCMC roads empty as Lunar New Year dawns

The usually busy Truong Chinh Street in Hanoi is desolate at 7 a.m. as most businesses are shut on the first day of the Year of the Tiger.

The national flag flies outside houses in Cong Duc alley in the downtown area, a traditional way of celebrating the New Year and the founding anniversary of the Communist Party, February 3.

Some people show up at Ta Hien Street near Hoan Kiem Lake to take photos.

Motorbikes seen on Trang Tien Street with drivers swaddled in layers of clothes in temperatures of 12 degrees Celsius.

Some people pray for blessings at the But (Brush) Tower near Hoan Kiem Lake.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the Hanoi Highway linking the city with Bien Hoa is deserted.

This is a key highway connecting the city with the neighboring province of Dong Nai and is usually filled with vehicles.

A man rides a bicycle on Alexandre De Rhodes Road in District 1.

Rach Chiec Bridge in Thu Duc City has few vehicles.

Vo Van Kiet Highway is also deserted.

Some people take photos outside the HCMC Post, a place that was crowded even a day earlier.

Mai flowers bloom on the mostly empty Pham Ngoc Thach Road.