1985 was a pivotal year for the policy. The city was moving away from a strictly planned economy. While many items still required ration coupons, street vendors (like those selling sugarcane) represented the growing "free market." The Visual Palette
: The sound of the rhythmic "thwack" as vendors prepared the cane. Sugarcane Peking 1985
: For a few fen (cents), a vendor would chop a section of the stalk and peel back the tough outer rind with a sharp cleaver. 1985 was a pivotal year for the policy
: Vendors often used flatbed bicycles or small wooden carts to pile the long, purple-skinned stalks high. purple-skinned stalks high.