Hangzhou's SECRET breakfast market... soon extinct??

People say Hangzhou is a 'food desert', so I set out to test this out for myself. I decided to visit Damanong breakfast market in Hangzhou's old district for some local snacks!
GET YOUR WHACKBANG HAT HERE! shop.blondieinchina.com/
Follow me on Instagram @blondieinchina
/ blondieinchina
Follow me on Tiktok @blondieinchina / blondieinchina
Join my discord! / discord
You can help support me and my channel (and watch my videos one day early) on Patreon! Come join the Blondie gang! / blondieinchina
Ever wondered how I upload videos in China? I use Express VPN! It's been my go-to VPN for 5 years. (Click here for 3 months free when you purchase the annual plan): www.expressvpn.com/blondieinc...
Get the music I use in my videos: share.epidemicsound.com/F8Fhs
xxxx

[@gt6252pc]

The sweet rice drink is full of probiotics. It is fermented, but not yet fully alcoholic.

[@LeTangoNoir]

What is it called? Would be fun to try it sometime, sounds refreshing!

[@Nullifed787]

It kinda reminds me of sikhye in Korea

[@sherrygao7438]

@@LeTangoNoir In the Video it’s called ”酒jiu 酿niàng”。some area in China call it “甜tián 酒jiu ” “醪lao 糟zao ” or “米mi 酒jiu ”. Generally means sweet fermented glutinous rice wine.

[@BenjiSun]

@@Nullifed787 it's quite similar, as well as similar to Japanese amazake. they're all mildly fermented rice which brings out the sugars but before it gets turned into alcohol. for Jiangnan region, you can buy small little tubs of jiuniang and it's recognizable by that they look like a donut of rice, with a big dimple in the center top to see the liquid seeping out of it. if you google 酒酿, that should be like half the photos.

[@yerri5567]

Although no alcohol is added, its slightly alcoholic from the fermentation. If you drive and get tested with a breathalyser, youre gone...

[@geoolympics]

If you ask anyone selling food "is this a Local Specialty?" the answer is always yes. Also, "does this taste good?", "OF COURSE!".

[@victorliu702]

lol fun facts

[@kongtheo1599]

ur extremely brilliant

[@syllabler5388]

I think some of those street foods are really local specialty of Hangzhong, never seen congbaohui and the deep-fried fish in other Chinese cities.

[@CabbageMan23]

My mom would interrogate vendors with yes/no questions until she’s convinced and satisfied.

[@kelelala]

dead on XD

[@platocai8874]

这个阿姨一边吃饭，一边和你聊天，这一幕太温馨了，关键是这句话： 在这里买一套房.....哈哈哈 This auntie chatted with you while eating her meal, it was so heartwarming. The key part of the conversation was: "buying a house here...hahaha"

[@arafsadventures]

Food in China is the best 😋 That's one of the reasons why I live here ❤

[@loodyqt]

What are the other reasons (just curious)?😄

[@arafsadventures]

@@loodyqt Rent is cheap, people are very friendly, everyone's respectful, an great opportunities with the growing economy

[@aptor]

葱包烩 is definitely Hangzhou’s specialty. Others are not quite… Thank you for the great introduction to the local food.

[@stonechen2480]

I've been to Hangzhou several times, never even heard it as a "food desert". Just a couple of Hangzhou's famous dishes: 西湖醋鱼 (West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy), 东坡肉 (Dongpo's Brasied Pork) (not specifically Hangzhou, but got famous there), 叫花童鸡 (Beggar's Chicklet), 龙井虾仁 (Souteed Shrimps Meared with Longjing Tea), 片儿川面 (local noodles), etc.

[@TubeSqrl]

however, maybe the good cooking techniques are not wide spread, i ate the 西湖醋鱼 in 楼外楼 and it has a dirt flavor and so fishy😢

[@stonechen2480]

@@TubeSqrl 1. Taste is very subjective, some Hangzhou locals don't even like it. 2. Personally, I think 楼外楼's service and technique have not improved with time. There's a lotta complaints online about this famous restaurant.

[@heisier]

As a Chinese living in Zhejiang, I have never heard anyone around me say that 西湖醋鱼(West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce) is a delicious Hangzhou dish.@@TubeSqrl

[@yongshengluo2879]

​@@TubeSqrlcome piatto è buono pero cucinato da solo, perche io l'ho provato li almeno in quello ristorante che sono andato non l'ha cucinato bene

[@weepingcamel1]

西湖莼菜汤！

[@ccei638]

The fried fish is not really Hangzhou specific. It is a common dish in Shanghai, Zhejiang and Jiangsu region. The most famous Hangzhou specific dish is "西湖醋鱼“ （West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy）。Another famous thing specific to Hangzhou is 龙井茶 (Longjing Tea).

[@ybhcch]

西湖醋鱼非常难吃

[@user-md1em2tg3q]

我记得第一次吃西湖醋鱼的时候觉得好难吃，那时候我认为是这家餐厅不够地道，直到我吃了三四家以后，我终于明白，对于我来说这道菜是真的不好吃。

[@ybhcch]

鱼是鱼，醋是醋，西湖是西湖 @@user-md1em2tg3q

[@prob1ems]

别提那个名字，立刻就觉得嘴里一阵腥味

[@hoke3961]

杭州现在确实是美食荒漠

[@toewomg]

🎉 Amy, what that old lady told you was incorrect, that drink you bought from her has alcohol in it, but with very small amounts, generally with 1 to 2% alcohol in them !

[@rickyzhangnan]

When I studied in Hangzhou, during that 4 years my favorite restaurant was actually a Muslim restaurant called Dong Yi Shun. The other places I have been to have faded away from my memory

[@RespectOthers1]

Amy is a LEGEND. Every one of her awesome videos allow us to ‘learn more’! :D

[@user-sy1vx4xh5z]

lol I also watched the "learn more" video, it's funny.

[@opensamentododia4499]

I'm from Brazil and love China🇧🇷❤🌄🏯🇨🇳

[@adanphu4325]

A lot of foreigners they want to be chinese

[@huiqinjinxi4514]

Come to visit!❤❤❤

[@quanchanel3678]

And I'm from China and I love Brazil! Currently living in Recife now 🎉🎉

[@TwoCentsOnTour]

Fried fish at 7am... well that's new! Hangzhou looks beautiful though, I'll have to go back there one day and seek out some local tastes 😊

[@iinnrrr]

Thanks for posting. Because Hangzhou is hosting Asian games!!!! The last drink you have feel alcoholic because it's fermented rice, she added yeast.

[@fatmanskills3771]

The building at the top of the mountain is lit up at night. If you walk by West Lake at night you can see it. It looks stunning. It switches off at 11pm though. Hangzhou is my home city since I moved to China. Great videos.

[@katiirabbi]

I'm shocked that you haven't had 酒酿 in all your travels across China? It's most certainly NOT a hangzhou specialty hahaha, you can find it basically anywhere in the southern part of China. I think it might be slightly less common in the north (definitely as a drink like you were having it), but it's a pretty common food that people have definitely heard of.

[@andy_2221]

That lady vendor was so precious. Y’all really hit it off.

[@junhaohu5266]

I've been to Hangzhou several times, but never realized that there are so many local dishes there that I had never seen before! Amy did such an awesome work! Thank you so much!

[@BenjiSun]

the locals want to call it HZ specialty, but many of those dishes are widely available throughout Jiangnan region. you can get variations of the same thing in most cities between Nanjing and Shanghai, just this place might be sweeter, another place might be saltier, etc... (Changzhou and Yangzhou are definitely super salty, and Wuxi and Suzhou everything is ridiculously sweet)

[@ryankai500]

As a local Hangzhou resident , it is very sad to hear almost everyone calling Hangzhou a food desert. While the food is basically as same as the food in the Yangtze river area, which makes Hangzhou lacking of the real local gourmet comparing to the other cities in China.😢😢😢 But you do can find a lot of great food in the city, though it is not very local as you can see in the video. So I would recommend everyone to visit Hangzhou and feel the city with such a leisure vibe (and great food😢) yourselves. btw I can literally see my high school on the Chenghuang Pavilion 11:57 😂😂😂

[@BenjiSun]

wait what? Hangbangcai is not local? of course there's tons of Hangzhou local specialties even excluding the Huaiyang influences... the title of food desert has more to do with the lack of street foods, which is basically just congbaohui and spring chicken versions of jiaohuaji, but cuisine that can be served on a table? Hangzhou has 2000 years of history. even noodles like 虾爆鳝面 and 片儿春 are very much Hangzhou local. please do not look down at your own Hangzhou as lacking in anything. Shanghai is the actual desert with only 14-18 dishes that are actually from Shanghai and can claim to be Shanghainese dishes. the rest are all imported from all over Jiangnan(like other Zhecai like Ningbocai and Shaoxingcai), along with Sichuan and Beijing cuisine. Hangzhou is the capital of Zhejiang and a lot of great ingredients all come through Hangzhou, like Jinhua ham. It doesn't make any sense that a millenia old traditionally wealthy city to be void of good locally developed food.

[@alexdeng2418]

@@BenjiSun 片兒川

[@defeatSpace]

is it that gray building with the blue cuboid entrance connecting to the right-side of the building on the bottom right-hand of the frame?

[@roland-100]

@@BenjiSun 感谢你

[@garylai5174]

Amy you should definitely visit the Hangzhou Cuisine Musuem (中国杭帮菜博物馆)! I was a volunteer tour guide there many years ago. Idk why Hangzhou has this fame for being the food desert, but at least in theory, it has one of the richest and unique gastronomic culture in China, because during Song Dynasty, the **Jurchens** invaded so they moved the capital from the North (Henan) to the South (Hangzhou). Therefore, a lot of the food culture from Henan became infused with Hangzhou cuisine at the time. This is the main reason Hangzhou is one of the few places in the South where noodles have the same status as rice (as you probably already know, usually the North eats more noodles and the South eats more rice). The museum walks through 5000 years of Hangzhou's food history and has many bits I think you would find interesting: how chopsticks developed, recipes from Song dynasty, the story of Dongpo pork (东坡肉) and how it has to do with the construction of West Lake etc.

[@ericgong5030]

Don't go there.

[@MHD_6318]

杭州被称为 美食荒漠，是因为跟其他的城市比较（成都、广州………），他的美食只能算一般般，没有什么出色的地方

[@jayzee316]

@@MHD_6318 成都重庆基本上就1-2个味觉版本，所有的菜都是香辣/麻辣+重油。

[@ucool9735]

Not Mongol, it was Juchen

[@Moksha-Raver]

A cuisine museum sounds like a wonderful idea. The Chinese are ingenious.

[@Johnwalkstheworld]

Great video Blondie. As usual it makes me want to visit with you and try these foods. Miss you❤

[@junyiling8626]

Pretty sure the 酒釀 drink IS slightly alcoholic. The fermentation process has turned much of the starch into sugar. But only small amount of the sugar has been turned into alcohol at this point. And if you leave it alone and let it ferment for longer, it'll eventually get quite alcoholic, a little like Sake.

[@user-hk4ke4ks5t]

From my experience, the fermented rice drink can be found almost everywhere in China, and it does contain a little bit of alcohol, but not enough to get you pulled over for drunk driving. Kinda like kvass from Russia.

[@yuanzhu1170]

Studying in Hong Kong now, watching this video makes me homesick and burst into tears😢

[@haiqinsun3062]

Comparing Hangzhou to a food desert seems to have become a trend recently. As a Hangzhou native, I thought this comparison was interesting at first, but gradually I felt a little lost. These foods are memories from my childhood, so good to see your video!!🥰

[@kaponomaa3415]

As a migrant laborer who has been working in Hangzhou for five or six years, most of the time when I talk to my friends around me about food deserts, what I mean is that when I need a quick fix for a working lunch and dinner, I will find that most of the fast food restaurants randomly chosen by the side of the road (about 40% probability) are very unpalatable -- it's not that they're bland, on the contrary, most of them are just too salty, too oily and even always have chili peppers and the like. On the contrary, most of them are too salty, too oily or whatever the dish is, there is always some kind of chili added. The reason behind this may be that the ingredients are not fresh or the chef is not serious about it (just in case someone says I am a picky eater, let me clarify that I am a fat person who loves to eat at nearly 100kg). So when I say Hangzhou is a food desert, I don't mean that the local food is unpalatable. Rather, the probability is that the food at a working price is very difficult to eat (and in every way possible). This is precisely not because there is no local cuisine in Hangzhou. Instead, it's actually the problems of urban planning, the gap between rich and poor, and even the prejudice of locals against outsiders that have been exposed by the city's rapid expansion. These problems exist in any big city, but they are particularly acute in Beijing and Hangzhou because of the rapid urban development of the past decade or two.

[@jamesnotking]

A lot of the foods mentioned are common among the Yangtze river delta 长三角 area! We really share a common palate. As a Shanghainese I feel nostalgic watching this video :)))

[@user-qk1wc1os3u]

看完这个视频让我更确定了杭州是美食的荒漠啊😭（我四年在杭州）。顺便一提：那个喝的糯米的南方叫酒酿，北方我这叫醪糟，是有度数的其实，要注意。卤大肠我们那咸香带有足够的八角茴香草果等香料的也不差啊！那敲钟就是香客付费就能敲的不是报时的。不过杭州景确实好，enjoy your trip~

[@haoniu9345]

那个大娘可能不清楚具体原理。粮食发酵了产生的那可不就是酒精么。。。糯米、高粱都是酿酒的原材料，酒酿是度数很低的酒，继续发酵成高度的就和平时饮用的酒差不多了。

[@user-qk1wc1os3u]

@@haoniu9345 其实就是为了怂恿人买的话术，杭州常见

[@user-qg2zd1nv1r]

I am from Hangzhou, I always think Hangzhou food respect the original flavours of the fresh produce. And we always have plenty of fresh produce that’s why just simple steam, stew, can bring out the best taste. I like chuan food, xiang food, but I can only eat hangzhou food everyday.

[@markshen3280]

I have also been to HANGZHOU. It has many historical / cultural heritage value, too !

[@pohgeoktan6878]

I just simply love ❤️ your videos. Your jovial face, the way u react to the food, the way u talk n every thing. U r also very funny n friendly. The Chinese people also love u. Malaysia. ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@romeong5218]

Hangzhou was one of our side trips from Shanghai and we only got to see West Lake and the Grand Canal. Well, I guess next time we will stay a little longer and enjoy what Amy enjoyed. Thank you foe your video Amy

[@asherbeal8357]

@5:04 I eat Chinese Vegetarian/Vegan “meats” all the time. Smoked “Duck” breast is amazing. Most of what I buy is produced in Taiwan where it’s quiet common.

[@OliverHe-vb9vy]

About the watermelon, it probably from the Congming Island(Shang Hai), a beautiful island in Yangzi river.

[@zzzzingify]

A world needs ppl like Amy!

[@adanphu4325]

That fermented rice actually has alvohol in it produced by yeast. If it is sweet, you should eat and drink it cold, it is incredibly delicious

[@joechua07]

We have the 斋鹅 (vegetarian goose) in Singapore as well. The good ones are super crispy and really tasty, and usually we eat it with fried thin rice noodles (米粉）

[@jerometsowinghuen]

Hoping the breakfast market in Hangzhou could still be preserved in the future, as part of the town’s culture and practice in dining during the morning.

[@jenovia22]

Nice to the realistic version of the Chinese markets. Food looks great!

[@blues7667]

Perfect. I am planning to go to Hangzhou next month. This is a great video for my trip

[@mysmilesarah]

So cool you had your own station at the convention!!

[@hollywang4282]

yay! the city i live in china! 🫶🏼 hangzhou is the best 🥹 i’m happy you found some cool local cuisine! i will have to venture that street! 😍

[@vinniekay0967]

Thanx 4 lighting up my day! Although it's 02:39 AM local time (Night)

[@lexij2398]

Just finished watching your last video, to my surprise a new one popped up! Thank you!

[@skygaz3r]

That sweet rice drink reminds me of a Korean rice drink called makgeoli! So interesting!

[@dianad150]

I really like that big fried fish fillet with marinated sauce。

[@Hskysgsns]

omg I felt like I was able to visit my hometown again after so long through your video! TEARS

[@Censor999]

I have visited once Hangzhou many years ago. Crazy how fast everything changes in China. Cant wait to visit China again.

[@BenjiSun]

oh hey, i used to work on that tiny mountain you went up just above Damanong and Gulou(drum tower?), almost 20 years ago. and as others have said, that suyu fish is pretty much just a variant of a popular Jiangnan/Shanghai appetizer called Xunyu(熏鱼 lit. smoked fish, but it's not smoked, just deep fried fish dipped repeatedly in a sweet dark soy sauce mixture.) that vege-goose is just fried tofu skin, and technically, Buddhist vegetarian "meats" weren't developed for the monks, but the story supposedly goes that the monks developed it for visiting parishioners coming in to pray and want to eat filling meat dishes, but temples can't kill animals, so they created these tofu and wheat gluten products that are meat-like for the visitors and it's been developed for hundreds of years ever since. i would love to be able to take you and Derk on a food adventure to some of my favourite restaurants in HZ some day, and also to my favourite tea house for lunch(yes, you'll come out holding your stomach from the sheer amount of food they serve with the teas).

[@ba-gg6jo]

We have tiny fish called Whitebait which are dipped in flour and then deep fried in the UK. So crispy and you eat everything. Would love to try the fried fish. Thanks for another interesting vlog.

[@mingzhang2590]

“美食荒漠”是因为杭州这座城市在二十年的时间里迅速扩张，工业化带来的结果，而且这座旅游城市以外来人口居多，很难吃到本土的东西。想要在杭州吃到好吃的，需要深入到杭州的乡下。

[@katiirabbi]

Some of the writings on your bilibili wall have really nice penmanship!

[@Mike-vn3lt]

I love that Blondie hears "food desert" and immediately thinks "nah no way". 😂❤

[@user-yp9yr1ck2l]

Amazing video！Welcome to my hometown，since u have tasted so many specialities u r more authentic than most hangzhou people：）And right now i live in ur hometown what a coincident!

[@adanphu4325]

Very nice blondie!!! You take suggestions and nice advices very nicely!!!

[@mikedev901]

This video was so wholesome! Good local food, historic areas and a viewpoint, it looked like the perfect travel day

[@weiwu3108]

I think that's a wintermelon instead of a gourd ;) Really really enjoy your videos though, Go Blondie!

[@BenjiSun]

yep, that long, dark-skinned giant thing is definitely a wintermelon.

[@user-sm3ru1fm6g]

Maybe worth trying Chiu Chow pig intestine marinated in gravy. As for the zing in the drink, maybe the fermented sticky rice is alcoholic?

[@user-pk1bi1ol9u]

Great video Amy!

[@jt8433]

after watching your video, i truly believe that Hangzhou is a food desert. thanks for confirming that.

[@melindamucsi]

What was Bilibili World like? Everyone just had a stand and free to walk around or there were thematic panel discussions, as well? Did you get to meet other food content creators you haven't met before, any plans for collaboration? That wall for local food recommendations was brilliant!

[@Vntoronto]

Hi Amy!👋🏻 love this episode 😂😂😂 the ringing bell is so funny! Enjoy your eating adventure!

[@musicfan300]

Thanks for another fun video, Amy! 杭州 is also the site and setting for much of a very famous old classic novel (~400 years and still popular) called 濟公傳(now 济公传). 西湖 was the hangout many of the book's characters.

[@peterfarnsworth9495]

That was a great vlog ❤ been there at that temple .

[@winterburden]

That's so cool, have fun!

[@soyrubn]

Thanks for sharing. I've been enjoying the videos from food all around China. Love from México

[@michaels7900]

😂That fish doesn't look appetizing , no wonder the place is called Food Desert!

[@jurrasicpig2426]

one of my fav cities in china, so many wonderful places to visit

[@patrickjiang6728]

In the desert, there are oases, but most places are barren. The same goes for food deserts.

[@haowang8890]

西湖醋鱼，龙井虾仁， 西湖莼菜羹，干炸响铃卷，东坡肉，叫花鸡，杭帮菜怎么会没好吃的呢？素鹅是豆腐皮做的，technically 这一顿是均衡的，有carb， 也有protein。

[@adorabledev]

china in general is culture of food, every part of it

[@phoebewan471]

Thank you for visiting my hometown which brings me homesick feelings😅

[@hooray5395]

The famous watermelon in Shanghai is called 8424. 84 represents the year 1984 when the new variety of watermelon has been cultivated， and 24 represents the 24th group of cultivated seeds. The Lab is in Shanghai Nanhui.

[@troutstalker4744]

Blondie never disappoint ❤

[@jerrysmith9426]

I wonder who came up with this food desert for Hangzhou, which actually has much more variety and well known local cuisine than most parts of China.

[@judyw1260]

really enjoy your vLog, so energetic introducing the different places in China. Love to see this beautiful country.

[@Thomas-Chin10]

It seems that I have learned more about Chinese food from Amy than from anywhere else, and this was my first time seeing a baby watermelon and served that way. 😊

[@mimiruu]

another great video

[@cooper1819]

What I tried very good is Dragon Well Green Tea shrimp, 龙井虾仁, at Hangzhou is very good. Give a try if you are at a restaurant.

[@kristinaclaassen7967]

Try the "Shao E Lai Fen" (烧鹅濑粉）in Dongguan.

[@Faruhs]

Oh my god, you should go to Zhujiajiao 朱家角镇 water town, the scenery is amazing there and all the food stands, restaurants with fresh fish etc are amazing.

[@wow1024wow]

我住杭州，我喜欢老头儿油爆虾的吓+鱼 ，和 弄堂里的小吃 ，弄堂里的传统糕点 做得挺精致的，还很平价

[@wow1024wow]

还有梭子蟹炒年糕

[@wow1024wow]

灵隐寺附近也有好几家很好吃的 素食自助餐馆～非常推荐。我个人还是很喜欢吃杭州的各种豆腐制品

[@warcraftSENSw]

杭州东西最难吃,全国公认的,不是我偏见

[@wow1024wow]

难吃是普遍，好吃的也有 确实少 哈哈哈，西湖醋鱼黑出翔了 @@warcraftSENSw

[@MG-sc9cq]

As per Google: "Each local cuisine has its own characteristics, but Chinese cuisine as a whole is divided into four major schools - Shandong, Sichuan, Huaiyang, and Guangdong (Cantonese). To these can be added four more: Hunan, Fujian, Anhui, and Zhejiang". Do you agree? Please let me know if there are culinary schools based on it.

[@amoysolomon2669]

8 not 4

[@BenjiSun]

Huaiyang cai and Zhe cai can't really be separated anymore and is basically now just Jiangzhe cai, that most outsiders simply call "Shanghainese", except Shanghainese benbancai is only around a dozen or so dishes, the rest are all imported from all the immigrants when everyone was trying to get into Shanghai to work. also, agree with djyx8, don't trust google.

[@EwanXue]

山西的面食也可以了解下

[@shinshin3395]

明显缺少西北啊。典型的西北肉食、面食是全国最好的。

[@stevenkyle9426]

Actually the 8 you mentioned are the "8 main branches" of Chinese food. And the sub-branches are numerous, for example dongbei (northeast) food and beijing food are sub-branches of shandong food. There are also xibei (northwest) food, Yunnan food, Inner Mongolian food, which are unique from those main branches as well.

[@gigihide6974]

I've been watching your channel for a few months now, exploring different kinds of food in China, because I have autism and it is hard for me to travel. I wrote about it in a short or video a little while ago, i cant remember which one it was. My point is, that I think I might be able to try the deep fried fish from earlier in the video! Not the small whole fishes, but the large pieces of fresh fish. It seems really yummy, especially with the sauce!! I am super interested. I hope that one day, I can experience stuff like this more easily.

[@dons6556]

Bravo, it is great you have an open mind for food! Wish you the best and hope you get your wish soon

[@guyyang4674]

Hangzhou surely has its own delicacies! They have more fishes and veggies in their diet. An old-schooled home-made dishes are less greasy and less salty. This is very different compared with other regions in China.

[@food4444lyfe]

Love vegetarian roast goose... it's basically just a flavored deep fried soybeancurdy type product.... 😅❣️

[@Watermelon7710]

Maybe a Ningbo Episode coming soon? I can tell you all the go-to places in Ningbo!

[@ohmyivan]

She cannot understand Ningbo accent

[@leileiwei9082]

哈哈哈杭州市政府要感谢你艾米，前阵子杭州政府还悬赏100万制定杭帮菜标准，以摆脱美食荒漠的帽子

[@taowu8662]

I would recommend "杭州酒家"，all local dishes with real Hangzhou flavor!

[@xiandarkthorne]

The fermented rice drink cum pudding is fantastic when icy cold because it's sweet, soft, slightly sour and mildly alcoholic. We make it in Malaysia too where we call it "tapai" (pronounced 'tar-pie'). There's an interesting little bit of culinary folk belief about making it and it's said that not everyone can make it sweet. Some people can just produce sour tapai like vinegar and not sweet unless they literally bury the rice in sugar while others have the right touch to make a sweet and more alcoholic one with just a bit of sugar.

[@BenjiSun]

please just refrain from using the latin "cum" to mean and or slash. the modern slang meaning of male reproductive juices is too prevalent in modern culture, especially when that's the one and only latin vocabulary you add to English.

[@xiandarkthorne]

@@BenjiSun so sorry but I do speak and write the King's English and that Latin word is a part of it. I am afraid I lead a rather sheltered life and thus cannot claim familiarity with debased forms of the language.

[@Henry-teach-Chinese-in-jokes]

Enjoy your time in China. I’ve made many videos teaching Chinese language in a vivid and humorous way. I hope somebody can recommend my videos to those who want to learn Chinese. For beginners, Chinese characters may look complicated. But once you learn about 100 basic radicals, most characters become easy. I hope more people can learn Chinese to get comprehensive firsthand information about China and most likely seek more job opportunities. Learning a completely different language and its culture will certainly broaden our views.

[@jaycen]

The background story of the bell tower I learned back in school: In the heart of Hangzhou, nestled among the whispers of ancient trees and the reflections of West Lake, stands an age-old bell. Legends say that this bell, crafted by master artisans during the Song Dynasty, held a secret. Every chime was meant to echo messages from the cosmos. Generations passed, scholars debated, and many pondered the profound meanings behind its reverberating tones. After years of research and deciphering old manuscripts, a young scholar named Li Yi discovered the true message of the bell. As he translated the last verse from an almost-forgotten poem, his eyes widened in realization. With bated breath, he announced to the crowd, "My fellow people, the universe spoke through our ancestors and today, it says... 'like, subscribe, and ring that notification bell.'

[@MegaCavatina]

LOL!

[@jy8674]

Crispy fried fish is not Hangzhou's specialty, it's actually originated from 太湖熏鱼，specialty of city of Wuxi, Jiangsu Province. When it comes to 酒酿，it is almost seen everywhere around Jiangnan area.

[@user-yn6jz9jf9p]

酒酿是全国各地都有的。

[@CandiceLuo-to3kz]

Hi Amy, I am a huge fan and watch every episode of yours. Not sure if you will be reading this, but I am really curious how you manage to visit places in China as a foreigner and deal with the various requirements there might be. Would hope that you could reply :))). My husband and I, too, plan to spend some time in China visiting places and trying local cuisines just as you do, but I read that foreigners need to stay at designated hotels/ accommodations in each place we visit, and register at local police stations upon arrival. Is that what you have to do?

[@jayzee316]

from someone who was born in hangzhou, 方老大 - 腰花拌川， or 腰花茄汁拌川，you can switch the toppings but my fav are 腰花，鳝鱼，大肠

[@leiwang554]

God, I used to live in that neighborhood when I was a teenager. I miss the 烟火气 which is hard to find nowadays in Hangzhou. Hangzhou has become way too morden in many regards. The old lifestyle is mostly gone.

[@youngsmith5647]

i like your videos, i can enjoy your food trip, more important, learn English meanwhile as a Chinese guy, i am very happy that foreigner like Chinese food and share to the world. welcome to China, 😊😊

[@kkdance]

What a great idea of the “suggestion wall” !

[@davidlazarus67]

I can’t imagine anywhere in China being a “food desert.”

[@gphuang67]

Maybe it takes one rmb to gong the bell once.

[@user-pe6pq5yq3s]

I've seen a lot of videos about the flooding in China . Is this to where you are? Love your videos.