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Time for tea in Loutang ancient town

I remember as a child in Jiading's Loutang Town, that people from other places would head toward the town center at dawn everyday. By about 8am the center was full of people.

Loutang was the political and cultural center of the north old Jiading.

The development of tea house and tea culture catered to the needs of political and economical development in the town and its surrounding areas. I remember that there were more than 10 tea houses in the town in 1940, including the famous Pingquan Pavilion and Huixian Garden. Some tea houses also sold cigarettes, candy and snacks to attract customers.

There are some similarities between the wine house and the tea house, as they are both the places for communication.

The four-roomed wine house operated by Xu Ayue on Xuanhoumen Street was a favorite with local residents as it sold different wines and spirits, as well as a variety of snacks at reasonable prices. While the tea house operated by a couple with tall legs was opposite to the wine house, the business was also quite good with a dozen of tables fully occupied by the customers everyday.

According to the "Jiading County Annals," the town's market was 0.75 kilometers long from north to south and more than one kilometer long from east to west in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), with more than 100 shops which mostly sold food. In my childhood, Xiaobei Street and Dabei Street were some of the busiest commercial streets in Loutang.

In addition to the tea house and wine house, some variety stores which sold dried mushrooms, fungus, lychees, walnuts, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and other necessities are also very famous, such as Chengong Maoyuan, Chenfuxing and Tangwanxing.



 

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