朋友你好 -Hello friends! (in a simplified version of Chinese) Throngs of people, scattered gift shops, narrow streets, and let’s not forget about the wonderful restaurants were seemingly ubiquitous in Chinatown. This was my first “authentic” visit to Chinatown, in which I had a chance to explore and take several interesting snapshots of the region (and try some amazing FOOD!). First, let me start off with the nature of the people that lived in Chinatown. For the most part, I observed a homogenous group of people (predominantly Chinese) and many of the people seemed pretty amiable. For the three interviews we filmed, the people were very responsive and patient with us, which I found delightful. There were also people from different backgrounds, but not too many, who were interested in trying out the food and did their grocery shopping there. Moreover, the majority of the people were speaking in their Chinese dialects and most signs were also written in Chinese, so it was tough trying to identify certain areas, but much thanks to Jodi and Rui Yan for helping us boys!!
In addition, I would like to randomly add: I did not know that Chinatown and Little Italy were so close to each other! I remember walking with my group and seeing Little Italy, thinking we better head back to Chinatown. Another thing I found amusing was my group and I saw a sign that said “Little Chinatown.” I was pondering, “Is this Big Chinatown then?” (of course, jokingly). Now that the “amusement part” is over, I would like to talk about art in Chinatown. In fact, I actually am in accord with Rui Yan that Chinatown lacked significant pieces of art. I do not know whether the creative items in the gift shops count as art, but I noticed a dearth of interesting pieces of art in Chinatown. For instance, even during our interviews, most people said they came here for the food and shopping, rather than to view art. Nevertheless, after an hour of roaming around, we encountered a Chinese theater for opera, in which entrance was free (how exciting!) Honestly, even though I did not understand what the people in the opera were singing, the voices were nice and the setting was well-arranged. Furthermore, we spotted a statue of Confucius, a famous Chinese philosopher, who emphasized education, morals, and family values. Just like Rui Yan, I felt that this statue symbolized Chinatown as a whole because it exposes the Chinese culture to us and how important family and traditional customs are to the Chinese people. I don’t recall seeing any other forms of art in Chinatown, unless graffiti on the walls count… 😀
My favorite part about being in Chinatown was Columbus Park. I greatly enjoyed watching people practicing their ‘tai chi’ and playing their musical instruments (unique instruments, too!) In fact, there was also singing, which I found interesting. We spoke to the aged individuals who were playing music for entertainment purposes and found them to be very knowledgeable about the area and in Chinese culture. I found the instruments they were playing very creative and interesting and then I realized the talent of these people and how hard some people work to earn a decent living in this country. Thus, I contributed some money to these old musicians, for they deserved it. Now going back to the food, the restaurants were extremely crowded. The first restaurant we went to had a very long wait and then we scurried along to this restaurant well-known for its dim-sum (yum!). I just had to say this because I never seen such packed eateries before.
Even though this was my first trip to Chinatown, I felt that I really enjoyed it, especially the cool gift shops with all sorts of accessories and Columbus Park. Chinatown may not be the best site to visit for art, but it is definitely a worthwhile place to hangout with friends and family to shop and eat (which most people come here to do). After all, Chinatown is mainly a tourist attraction and recreation/cultural center. In my opinion, Chinatown is an interesting place to be in, but be warned for it can get very and I mean very crowded, sometimes making it uncomfortable to be there. Combined with the narrow streets and tons of traffic, you definitely do not want to travel there by car…Nonetheless, I am glad that I got the opportunity to experience Chinatown. Now here are some interesting pictures that I would like to share:
