Guiyang Railway Station Alleys: Day to Night in China

Channel: Alleyways Alive Published: June 26, 2025 Duration: 48:41 Views: 269.8K

What this video shows

A walker with a camera spends a day and then a night moving through the small alleys around Guiyang Railway Station in Guizhou. The station was once the city's main transport hub, but since high-speed rail changed travel patterns it is far less crowded, and the lanes around it are quieter too. The route passes sealed massage-shop doors, women from rural Guizhou waiting for customers, and a knot of people who scatter when word of police spreads. The same path is retraced after dark, when the streets behave differently and prices are quoted openly.

At a glance

LocationGuiyang, Guizhou province
SettingLarge city, alleys around the railway station
What it coversDay-to-night walk through station-side alleys
Costs mentionedRMB 100 (about $14) for 10–15 minutes; RMB 150 quoted for a service that the walker says includes more
Time of dayDaytime walk, then the same route again at night

What stands out

The empty shops are empty for a reason: white seals on the glass mark massage parlours the police shut down, while others nearby stayed open and are assumed to be legitimate. Older women from rural Guizhou, described as having no particular skills, sit along the road hoping for clients but appear to get few because of their age. The walker treats the word "service" as local slang, explaining it as a coded reference to a tropical fruit rather than anything stated plainly. A taxi driver and passenger arguing draws the police, which is what the watching women seem to be reacting to, and one of them keeps calling the walker over even as officers work nearby.

Video transcript

Hey everyone, welcome to my channel! If you like my videos, please don't forget to subscribe. Thanks! Right now, I'm at the Guiyang Train Station. Before the high-speed rail was built, this was Guiyang's main transportation hub, so it used to be packed with all sorts of people. Now, with changes in how people travel, it's a lot less crowded, especially in the small alleyways around here. So, let's go check out what those unique Chinese alleyways look like now. Since the video is long, I'll provide explanations where necessary. Thanks! Just a year and a

half ago, this place was totally different. This dark alley used to be super busy, especially at night when even more people would come. But now, it's pretty much deserted. Notice those white seals on the glass doors? They're why this place is empty. The police shut down these massage shops. There are some massage places if you turn right up ahead too, and those haven't been shut down. I'm guessing the ones that are still open are legitimate. Okay, so I saw a customer leaving that massage parlor, and the masseuse was opening the door for him. It just

made me wonder, if there's nothing illegal going on, why were they always closing the door? I think next time I'm around, I'm gonna pop in and see what that place is all about. There are two women standing by the road here. I need to keep going forward because I'll be back here tonight. She kept sitting there until evening. These women are from rural Guizhou. They don't have special skills. They've gathered here to earn money, waiting for clients. But because of their age, it seems they don't get many customers. It's night now, and I'm walking the same

path I took during the day to see what's different. She asked me, 'Wanna play?' I asked her, 'How much?' She said, '100 yuan.' 100 yuan is like 14 US dollars, but she only gives you 10 to 15 minutes. Why's that woman standing here? I don't think anyone would dare ask her, even though the person in uniform next to her isn't a real cop. See those women in the distance? They're all running towards the same car. Maybe the gang member next to them got a warning about the police. But looking at them, they don't seem very sure if the police are actually there.

Let's go check it out together. I asked her how much it was. She said 150 yuan. Then I asked if there were any other services, and she confirmed there were, and that the 150 yuan included those too. But I told her I wanted to look around a bit more. A lot of you have been asking in the comments what I mean by "service." It's actually a kind of slang they use, and it just refers to eating a specific tropical fruit. By now, you must know what fruit I'm talking about, and you also get what I mean by 'service,' right? That guy looks really familiar with

them. I'm guessing he's either a regular or, more likely, part of a gang." I think I get why those women wanted to run but were hesitant. Turns out something happened here – a taxi driver and a passenger had a dispute, and the police are dealing with it now. She's still asking me to come play with her. Oh my gosh, her foundation was so thick, it almost scared me in the dark! The police are still handling the dispute here, but my day's filming is done. If you enjoyed my video, please don't forget to subscribe, like, and comment. Thanks!

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