The Linyi Night Market has become a cherished memory; a poignant feeling to walk through its former bustling streets!
Linyi's night market is undoubtedly a dazzling landscape of this city! Having lived in Linyi for many years, whenever someone asks about Linyi, the first thing that flashes into my mind isn't the square, the Yihe River, or even the sweet soup (san) – it's the Linyi night market.
Linyi night market has several places I frequently visit, including Kaiyang Road Night Market, Xinhua Food City, Lantian Pedestrian Street Night Market, and the small night market located opposite Dairyu (Da Runfa) – I've forgotten its exact name, but I often go there. Among these night markets, Kaiyang Road Night Market is my most frequented one!
The reason I'm so fond of the night market is that here you can find snacks from all over the country; pretty much anything you can imagine! Fried dough sticks (kao mian jin), sausages, spicy hot pot, duck blood vermicelli noodles, pork cutlets, chicken bone stew, cold skin noodles, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted corn, meatballs, fried skewers, rolled pancakes, etc. Basically, if you can think of it, you'll probably find it at the Linyi night market – food and drink and clothes and everything!
The night market has become a kind of memory! With several rounds of health and environmental reforms, the popularity of the night market has sharply declined. Stinky grilled stalls were banned from operating. Consequently, many delicious foods have disappeared.
Occasionally, you might still encounter a few stalls grilling dough sticks or sausages in the storefronts, but the rest of the snack vendors have all switched to non-smoking, non-stinky setups, such as cold skin noodles, lemon water, and dried fruits. All the snacks have changed, and they're still pretty good to look at, but after walking the whole way down, you're either drinking all kinds of water or you're full of coldness! It's not just your stomach that's cold, but your heart too.
Even knowing the night market won't open, you still habitually pass by it, looking at the deserted night market where you can almost hear your own echo, and a big, cold word drifts down from above in the face of the breeze.
After a period of disappointment, I've stopped hoping for it. When a place begins to decline due to objective reasons, if those reasons aren't addressed, it's almost impossible to restore its former glory.
Therefore, the past glory of the night market seems to have become a memory, which often makes people who have experienced it nostalgic and disappointed.
Of course, living in Linyi, from the city's perspective, we still hope that the city will get better and better! And if we can combine it with local life customs, it would be even better!
