Shopping in Hefang Street Market

Just a stone’s throw away from the busy pedestrian street that is Hefang Street, is a street market that caters more to the masses. The shopping area itself typically sells that same stuff, tea, figurines, T-shirts and snacks. There were a handful of interesting shops though. But the street market here is a little different as it sells stuff you normally would not expect. Surprisingly, Hangzhou is known for its pearls. I was under the impression that pearls noramlly would suit a sea based economy such as islands. However Hangzhou it seems that Hangzhou has made a name for itself in this area.

Hangzhou, having no direct access to the sea farms their pearls in the areas numerous lakes and rivers. These fresh water pearls as also sold in this street market. I was surprised to see an open shell displaying the pearls, I took a photo of it and I was told later that the owner was telling me off. The pearls apparently grow on the underside of the shell itself and are somewhat irregular in shape, contrary to the spherical ones we are used to.

There were other curious items on display here at the market. Snacks were also available though the do not have the same packaging as the ones in the pedestrian shopping street. Then again, knowing the tricks they employ to earn a fast buck, I might end up trusting these guys more. One curious item was being demonstrated, it was an inkless calligraphy system.

As you might know Chinese are avid fans of calligraphy, and I would often see some people, particularly the older folk, use an oversized brush to write on the pavement, using only water of course, which dries up over time. Anyway, the inkless calligraphy system features something akin to carbonized paper. Except that when you use a brush with water to write on it, it magically turns your brushstrokes into dark characters, much like, yes, ink. This might not appeal much to foreigners but to Chinese, this is something like a godsend as you do no need to purchase ink and you do not even need to wash your brush anymore. One customer was asking what kind of ink does it use, the owner answered incredulously, “Ink?! Ink?! This doesn’t need ink at all!”. Anyway, if you are into this kind of thing, you can get this to show off your Chinese calligraphy skills, or lack of it.

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