Godfrey Tanner, Mae -Lao Chai Village, Vietnam. (PEOPLE 2024)

After a 25km hike from Sapa , Rod Black (my travel guide) and I, came to the village of Lao Chai , where we settled in a Vietnamese family home. The next day we came to a modest hut with an earthen floor and an open fire for cooking, it was dark and challenging photographically. We were introduced to Mae who is reputedly 118 years old, possibly the oldest woman in the world. She was very gracious , and set out some stools for us to sit on. She spoke in her native Hmong dialect, in a faltering voice, our interpreter explained who we were. We exchanged niceties and gave her some gifts, and she agreed to let us photograph her. The sitting was brief , but memorable, and I hope I captured the legacy that time had etched on to her features, She has seen so much : the French colonists, the Japanese occupation, the North / South divide and Ho Chi Minh, the American's & Australians and their war; I'd imagine some great hardships were shouldered on her journey though life. Rod asked me how I felt afterwards, I replied, 'Very young ! '

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