{"id":330,"date":"2017-02-06T16:06:59","date_gmt":"2017-02-06T08:06:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/2017\/02\/06\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/"},"modified":"2017-02-06T16:06:59","modified_gmt":"2017-02-06T08:06:59","slug":"old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/","title":{"rendered":"Old-school Street Peddlers Still Seen In Modern Shanghai"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote><p>Street life and its clamor of commerce is a hallmark of Chinese culture. Most provincial neighborhoods have their own outdoor knife sharpener, cobbler, barber, locksmith, tailor, fix-it men and food carts &#8211; each with their own characteristic call.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Street life and its clamor of commerce is a hallmark of Chinese culture. Most provincial neighborhoods have their own outdoor knife sharpener, cobbler, barber, locksmith, tailor, fix-it men and food carts &#8211; each with their own characteristic call.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"1.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/Foq3kSZvyuZZjxJZgYYlzMWaw7oM?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"332\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_73 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#A_steel_cleaver_is_sharpened_on_a_whetstone_by_Mr_Zhou_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"A steel cleaver is sharpened on a whetstone by Mr Zhou. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">A steel cleaver is sharpened on a whetstone by Mr Zhou. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Old_Zhou_has_been_a_knife_grinder_in_Shanghai_for_30_years_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Old Zhou has been a knife grinder in Shanghai for 30 years. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Old Zhou has been a knife grinder in Shanghai for 30 years. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Popcorn_cannons_a_local_favorite_evade_authorities_by_coming_out_at_night_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Popcorn cannons, a local favorite, evade authorities by coming out at night. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Popcorn cannons, a local favorite, evade authorities by coming out at night. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Bicycle-based_tanghulu_candied_fruit_monger_along_Suzhou_Creek_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Bicycle-based&nbsp;tanghulu&nbsp;(candied fruit) monger along Suzhou Creek &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Bicycle-based&nbsp;tanghulu&nbsp;(candied fruit) monger along Suzhou Creek &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Antique_hand-crank-operated_leather_patcher_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Antique hand-crank-operated leather patcher &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Antique hand-crank-operated leather patcher &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Neighborhood_cobbler_replaces_a_shoe_heel_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Neighborhood cobbler replaces a shoe heel. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Neighborhood cobbler replaces a shoe heel. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Resident_receives_a_trim_from_a_curbside_barber_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Resident receives a trim from a curbside barber. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Resident receives a trim from a curbside barber. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/old-school-street-peddlers-still-seen-in-modern-shanghai\/#Roadster_repairmen_are_a_dying_breed_in_Shanghai_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\" title=\"Roadster repairmen are a dying breed in Shanghai. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times\">Roadster repairmen are a dying breed in Shanghai. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_steel_cleaver_is_sharpened_on_a_whetstone_by_Mr_Zhou_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>A steel cleaver is sharpened on a whetstone by Mr Zhou. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>But in Shanghai, the use of sidewalks has become a game of cat and mouse between authorities and &#8220;disruptive&#8221; itinerant vendors, who risk losing the precious tools of their trade if caught.<\/p>\n<p>Seventy-one-year-old Mr Zhou has been sharpening cutlery in Shanghai for nearly 30 years. Originally from Anhui Province, Zhou rides his bicycle from dawn to dusk, neighborhood to neighborhood, across the city, covering different districts daily. He sets up his wooden sawhorse and whetstone, announces his presence with musical metal leaves, then waits. &#8220;I used to sit in front of residential gates and people would rush out to bring their knives and cleavers to me,&#8221; Zhou told the Global Times. &#8220;But these days, young adults would rather just buy a new knife instead of taking the time to have their old ones sharpened.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"2.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/Fqe9ZVkCPTklhYl-Mp5xrcUpOWK4?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"753.0120481927711\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Old_Zhou_has_been_a_knife_grinder_in_Shanghai_for_30_years_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Old Zhou has been a knife grinder in Shanghai for 30 years. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>Back in his prime, Zhou sharpened up to 50 knives, cleavers and scissors per day; today he averages around half that, at 5 yuan ($0.73) per knife, each which he spends approximately 10 minutes on. He now receives most of his business from wet market mongers, who sharpen their steel cleavers at least once a week.<\/p>\n<p>As there are few roving knife grinders in Shanghai anymore, Zhou still sees a steady income and said he does not expect to retire anytime soon.<\/p>\n<p>Zhou is one of several traveling tradesmen and pushcart peddlers in Shanghai who this photographer has attempted to track down for a series on street merchants.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"3.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/FrQEtF12P0v3RFIAzDhDUwqoKK5Y?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"332\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Popcorn_cannons_a_local_favorite_evade_authorities_by_coming_out_at_night_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Popcorn cannons, a local favorite, evade authorities by coming out at night. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>As most keep no regular route or schedule, I had to lay in wait for weeks or months at a time until they reappeared where I first encountered them. Many I never saw again.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"4.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/Funim064WkYBJHM78gDnm0GkQJ3q?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"332\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Bicycle-based_tanghulu_candied_fruit_monger_along_Suzhou_Creek_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Bicycle-based&nbsp;tanghulu&nbsp;(candied fruit) monger along Suzhou Creek &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>Over the past few months, many of Shanghai&#8217;s last street merchants, curbside craftsmen and handcart hawkers, such as popcorn cannons and migrant costermongers, have been run off the sidewalks by chengguan (urban management officers) following the latest crackdown on unlicensed vendors.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"5.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/FibDV4QZPW_SJBNbFgR_BEwZOvy4?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"332\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Antique_hand-crank-operated_leather_patcher_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Antique hand-crank-operated leather patcher &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>Instead of dealing with the complicated procedures to obtain a license, many simply retire from their trade, leaving Shanghai with one less craftsman skilled in the old-school arts.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"6.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/Fo_c3IdjGgEmww4g4q3EJIEy3cb_?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"753.0120481927711\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Neighborhood_cobbler_replaces_a_shoe_heel_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Neighborhood cobbler replaces a shoe heel. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>Residents who once relied on traveling tradesmen setting up shop outside their community gates have grown collectively impatient with their increasingly erratic appearances.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"7.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/FpaDfptJk7ChqWXDWpL25kTd9sj3?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"753.0120481927711\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Resident_receives_a_trim_from_a_curbside_barber_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Resident receives a trim from a curbside barber. &nbsp;Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<p>Locals are thus now more inclined to repurchase mass-produced products at commercial shops than wait around weeks or months just to have something old sharpened, repaired or mended. And so it goes &#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"8.jpeg\" style=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/media.hiredchina.com\/FkmTQuQVz6220d6kko94dghEYmwA?imageView2\/0\/format\/webp\/q\/75\" height=\"332\" width=\"500\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<h5><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Roadster_repairmen_are_a_dying_breed_in_Shanghai_Photos_Tom_CarterGlobal_times\"><\/span>Roadster repairmen are a dying breed in Shanghai. Photos: Tom Carter\/Global times<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<hr>\n<h5> <\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Street life and its clamor of commerce is a hallmark of Chinese culture. Most provincial neighborhoods have their own outdoor knife sharpener, cobbler, barber, locksmith, tailor, fix-it men and food &#8230;","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-330","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=330"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/330\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=330"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=330"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hiredchina.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=330"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}