After dinner I walked through the industrial museum here in my hometown — Yongkang, the small city in Zhejiang that supplies a surprising share of China’s hardware. On the wall, behind glass, was a framed certificate from 1978. Yellowed paper, red and gold border, a five-pointed star at the top. What stopped me was the
I went back to the village this weekend and noticed something new: every pond now has a line of colorful floats strung around the entire water’s edge, like a necklace around the pond. They weren’t there last year. So what are they for? They’re a drowning-prevention lifeline. And there’s a story that shows they actually
A few days ago I was scrolling TikTok when I kept seeing the same thing: a “pricy noodle bowl” in the next city over — 88 RMB (~$13), ten toppings, served in a giant blue-and-white porcelain bowl big enough to feed a small family. Apparently it was worth the hype. So this weekend, I got
Today I ordered lunch on the food delivery app and tried a new place for a change — a hotel restaurant (yes, an actual hotel that does takeout). And the moment I opened the box, I had one of those small but very clear thoughts: So THIS is what 18 RMB can buy when a
This weekend I ate two local dishes I’ve been eating my whole life — 肉麦饼 (rou mai bing, pork-stuffed flatbread) and 小麦饼 (xiao mai bing, wheat pancake). Delicious as always. And then, for the first time, I really looked at them and realized something strange: The best food in my hometown is all designed to