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Can you please help me translate this in English. I tried using Google Translate and it seems inaccurate. Can you also emphasise what the meaning of 块子 and 还看到了小时候才看到“块子” is? Thanks.
This is the message: 回来那么久还是第一次来"五一路"还看到了小时候才看到的"块子".
It's about a Chinese restaurant and food I think.
块子
There are two possibilities, 炒面块子 and 大酱块子.
用炒过的糠粃，加在煮熟的红薯里捣烂和匀，压成块状晒干制成的食品。常为北方穷人家过冬的粮食。
It is often the winter food for the northern poor people.
(November/December) The soybeans are cooked with water for two to three hours. Crush and make into blocks (大酱块子). Wrap with paper. Ferment.
(May) Clean the surfaces with brush. Cut into small pieces and put them in a big container. Add water and salt. Cover with cloth. Ferment. Stir every day for more than a month.
BTW
Korea has the doenjang (韩国大酱).
Japan has the miso (味噌).
They are all made out of the soybeans, the paste and fermentation.
（我）还看到了小时候才看到（的）块子
I also saw the chunks that I saw when I was a child.
Don't think it has much to do with a restaurant. 块子 means 'lump of earth', it must be a feature on the way, a lump of dry mud or stone or something. Nanjing has a '五一路， 1st of May Road' and there is a '块子桥， Lump/Stone Bridge' in it. I think a lot of towns in China will have a '五一路‘, maybe not all of them will have a '块子桥‘ in the street. Did you miss 桥 from ’块子桥‘？？
(我）回来那么久
（I） came back such a long time ago
还是第一次来"五一路"
still this is the first time I came to "May 1st Road"
还看到了小时候才看到的"块子"
as a child I saw it, that's when I saw (the thing called) 'Lump'
If it was someone from 长沙, I guess by saying 块子 they meant a "place."
If it was someone from 武汉, however, it should be something you eat in the restaurant.
And I've done a research, in 五一 Road in 武汉, there are really restaurants offering 块子.
块子 looks something like this:
So the translation goes: It was the first time I went to 五一 Road after I came back, and I've even seen 块子 that I recall only from childhood.
Seems it's kinda like 米粉/面条, but smoother. And it's disappearing in 武汉, so I guess that's why they say they found 块子 that they remember from childhood.
Image source: http://m.dian321.com/meishi/42472.html
