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Disappearing street markets

2014-09-23 14:51 Global Times Web Editor: Qian Ruisha
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Local residents and vendors savor the last days that they will be able to shop at the market. Photos: Cui Meng /GT

Local residents and vendors savor the last days that they will be able to shop at the market. Photos: Cui Meng /GT

Sun Fuchun, a vendor of dried fruits and nuts who has run a stall at the Sihuan Market for more than 10 years, writes down his phone number for a loyal customer. Photo: Cui Meng /GT

Sun Fuchun, a vendor of dried fruits and nuts who has run a stall at the Sihuan Market for more than 10 years, writes down his phone number for a loyal customer. Photo: Cui Meng /GT

As grocery stalls all over Beijing are shut down, what is being lost is not just a bustling trade, but a way of life

By the end of this month, all of this will be gone.

Salary men and old women try to squeeze their way through throngs of throbbing masses, their baskets and plastic bags filled with produce and grain. Stall owners shout themselves hoarse as they peddle their wares in gruff regional accents or dialects, or greet their decades-old customers with a nudge and smile. There is the cacophony of haggling and bartering, the blare of an impatient three-wheeled cart, the smoky odor of roasted meat and the sweet scent of ripened fruit.

At midday on September 30, the street market on Sihuan Hutong in Xicheng district will be shut down forever, by order of an official notice. The 600 stalls, which for the past 15 years have served as a thriving hub for locals to buy groceries and everyday household items, will cease to exist. For the 30,000 to 40,000 people who frequent the market daily, what will be lost is not just a convenient and affordable way of procuring everyday necessities, but a way of life.

According to a Beijing News report published at the end of July, 63 such street markets in Beijing have already been demolished. The reasons given for their erasure is that they pose a safety hazard and are incompatible with their surrounding environment.

The same report speculated that in the place of the street market on Sihuan Hutong will be erected office buildings.

The warmth of human kindness

"Sorry, we won't be getting in any new shipments of chestnuts…the street market is being forced to shut down," says 45-year-old Sun Fuchun, a vendor of dried fruits and nuts, to one of his regulars.

Sun grins apologetically, but there is a trace of helplessness in his voice. Originally from Ji'nan, Shandong Province, Sun has earned his living at this stall for more than a decade, raising his two children on the profits he makes. With rent of 5,000 yuan ($814) per month, Sun's stall is expansive, and boasts more than 140 different kinds of dehydrated fruits and nuts.

"We are trying to find somewhere to lease nearby," says Sun to the regular, a 69-year-old retired high school teacher by the name of Zhang Lin. "Why don't I write down my cellphone number for you so I can let you know later?"

Zhang frequents the market nearly every day to buy groceries after her customary stroll around Houhai.

"The vendors here always give me a discount because they know us well by now," she said. "This place is full of humanity and kindness."

"They have a great variety of things, and the vegetables are fresher and cheaper than those sold in the vegetable stores on the street," she said. "It's a pity that this market is closing."

Letting go of the things that matter most

Jia Yin, a 38-year-old woman from Guang'an, Sichuan Province, occupies a far more modest stall costing 500 yuan in rent per month. For the past eight years, she has made her living here by selling tomatoes.

Jia is a well-liked among the locals, and greets all her customers with a friendly smile.

"For stall owners, this place is great because it's in a good location, the rent is cheap, and there are a lot of customers," she said.

Jia said that on average, she sells around 1,000 kilograms of tomatoes each day, at 3.6 yuan per kilogram.

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