Here’s a selection of beautiful vintage photographs showing Thai hill tribe people from Chiang Mai in the 1907s. Dutch photographer Don Oppedijk, now 65, captured the locals in the remote mountainous region in 1977. The pictures give a stunning insight into what life was once like for these indigenous people before economic development and tourism saw many move away into the big cities.
Children are seen walking around with large baskets slung over their shoulders as they help adults collect fruit. Women wear traditional head dresses decked out with beads while a man is seen smoking from a large opium pipe – once one of the largest exports from the region. While black and white shots from the same region show kids smoking hand-rolled cigarettes made from fresh tobacco grown outside their homes.
When you’ve enjoyed these pictures, make sure you see Bangkok in the 1970s and others in our series of vintage pictures of Thailand.
