Chinese phrase
这里原来是〜 zhè lǐ yuán lái shì 〜
Meaning
This used to be ___
When to use it
It says that a place used to be something else in the past. It is used to explain a change in a place's use or identity over time.
Example dialogue
你看那栋楼，这里原来是一家小咖啡馆。 nǐ kàn nà dòng lóu zhè lǐ yuán lái shì yì jiā xiǎo kā fēi guǎn
Look at that building. This used to be a small cafe.
真的吗？我以前常去那儿。 zhēn de ma wǒ yǐ qián cháng qù nàr
Really? I used to go there a lot.