The old bazaar streets around the central mosque are the living heart of Linxia's commercial and cultural identity. Stalls sell everything from prayer beads and Qurans to spices, dried fruits, handmade knives, and the elaborately embroidered caps worn by Hui men. The smell of lamb roasting on skewers and flatbreads baking in clay ovens fills the air. Walking here in the late afternoon, when traders are closing up and families are out in numbers, gives a strong sense of why this city has been described as a piece of Central Asia dropped into the Chinese northwest.
A particular speciality of the Linxia markets is the ornate metalwork and brassware used in mosque decoration — door fittings, lamp holders, incense censers — which are made locally and exported to Muslim communities across China. Small workshops along the back streets are often open to visitors who want to watch the craftsmen at work. The markets are busiest on Fridays before and after the main prayer.