Whenever we want some fresh fruits and vegetables, we just walk out of our apartment (the white/yellow buildings) and into the decades-old marketplace:
It’s a convenient location to pick up some local produce:
have our corn man slice kernels off the cobs:
or visit our favorite “short stool” restaurant:
There is also fresh local pineapple and sugar cane:
fried potatoes (just don’t ask about the source of the oil):
and a few clothing shops with some slightly misspelled English shirts:
Well, just a few weeks ago, the handwriting was on the wall (literally):
Our market is now scheduled for demolition. While we see rapid modernization all over the city, it feels different when it happens in your own backyard. All of a sudden, it gets more personal when they spray paint “destroy” on the houses and businesses of people with familiar faces:
Windows are already being removed and walls are being demolished:
In a few weeks, we’ll try to post more pictures as the process gets into full swing.
Sorry to hear about the upcoming demolition of your neighborhood. I guess they don’t ask the people who live there what they think about it.
“Eminent Domain” is freely exercised here, especially since most of the property is actually state owned. Although residents do not get to negotiate the price and timing, they are compensated for their losses (sometimes favorably – a good topic for a future blog).
Loved the pictures! We spent 3 weeks in China last July and enjoyed it so much. We long to go back some time! Andy and Elaine are coming home in July from China.
It is interesting to think about this in contrast to somewhere like, say, NYC — from what I understand, condo-style ownership (with distributed rights among each and every resident) has made it a challenge to renovate / replace many of the older buildings. Even if 99 residents agree, 1 can hold a veto power on selling to an external developer.
To some degree, this prevents the market from clearing. That said, eminent domain is ripe for abuse — and you hear stories about how this is particularly egregious in developing countries.