On 5/1, Jennifer Lynas's photos of Vietnam in the 1990s were re-shared on a tourism information site. In the image, she captured the bustling scene at Giap Bat bus station, Hanoi in 1996.

The board at Giap Bat station detailed the departure times for the Giap Bat - Gia Lam route, showing two types of buses with a 1,000 VND fare difference.

A bus stop in Hanoi featured routes 2, 3, 10, and 11, with some routes displaying bus company information and corresponding fares.

Jennifer Lynas photographed a bus in Da Nang.

Jennifer Lynas, who led one of the first independent tourist groups to Vietnam in 1990, returned six years later with her husband. During this second visit, she extensively photographed buses and coaches on the streets, documenting the state of transportation in Vietnam in the late 1990s. Her collection, recently re-shared on 5/1 by a tourism information site, provides a vivid historical record of the era.

A Quyet Thang bus on a street in Ho Chi Minh City, with passengers' bicycles strapped to its roof.

One notable capture from Hanoi is the bustling Giap Bat bus station in 1996. Buses from this period served key areas like Gia Lam, Giap Bat, and Cau Giay. Despite facing competition from tramways (rail-based electric trams) in the 1960s and trolleybuses (rubber-wheeled electric buses) in the late 1980s, buses have consistently maintained a vital role in Hanoi's transportation network to this day.

All photos include specific captions about the bus company and license plate. In this image, the photographer captured a Mekong Star bus, identified as an inner-city bus for Ho Chi Minh City. This particular model was manufactured by Mekong Auto's Cuu Long factory in 1991.

A bus traveling on a street in Ho Chi Minh City.

Lynas also documented buses in Ho Chi Minh City, offering a glimpse into the diverse public transport landscape of the era. Her photographs, including one of a bus traveling on a Ho Chi Minh City street, collectively paint a picture of how daily life and transportation intertwined in the southern metropolis.

Phuong Linh

Photos: Jennifer Lynas