Experiencing this market vitality — characterized by plumes of steam, strong aromas, and lively banter — is being pursued by more and more young people nationwide.

As Chinese New Year draws near, Liubu has been attracting more than 30,000 visitors on market days, with the number of young people growing, said Wen Xinran, a Liubu subdistrict office staff member.

About 300 kilometers away in Qingdao, a coastal city in Shandong, the Poli rural market was also buzzing early on Jan 22.

At 5 am, vendors were already preparing haixian huibing, or seafood braised with shredded pancake.

"Things have changed drastically," said Miao Peizhi, who has been cooking the dish for 20 years."Before, it was mostly local older people. Now half are young, curious people asking about the recipe and taking videos," he said.

Zhang Xiaojie, who works for the company that operates the market, said that on peak market days before Spring Festival, it has received over 70,000 visitors, with nearly 40 percent aged under 30.

"On ordinary market days, young people's attendance is around 30 percent (of the total). Many drive one or two hours from neighboring districts and cities to the market," said Zhang, adding that vehicles' license plates show they are from Beijing, Tianjin and neighboring Hebei and Jiangsu provinces.

Wang Hongkai, 35, drove four hours from Jiangsu to taste the delicacies at the market.

"Supermarkets have everything, but here we can watch food being made, chat with the person cooking it, and taste something that's not mass-produced," Wang said, adding that rural markets have authentic food specialties to sample.