If there is anything that can make people feel at ease in a foreign country, it is to meet a "fellow countryman".
Alone in a strange city, whether it is hard work or travel, probably most people hope that a familiar face can appear to help themselves, even if it is just to talk to themselves and relieve loneliness.
Therefore, many Chinese who travel overseas will first find out whether there is any Chinese gathering area in the local area when they go abroad, and if so, they will run there.
Of course, if you want to talk about the most prestigious Chinese gathering place abroad, of course, you must count the mysterious and Chinese-friendly Chinatown in the eyes of foreigners.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="39" >Chinatown's past and present lives</h1>
The blunt translation of Chinatown is "Chinatown". Chinatown does not refer specifically to a single street, but can refer to an area where Chinese people live in any other national city.
The reason why it is called "Tang" is because in the history of our country, the Tang Dynasty has the most far-reaching influence on foreign countries, and during the Song Dynasty, "Tang" is still the synonym for China by overseas countries.
Although the emergence of Chinatown dates back to the sixteenth century, the prosperity of the real thing began in the nineteenth century. At that time, China's trade with the Western world began to increase, and many Chinese workers crossed the ocean to find a livelihood in the countries on the other side of the ocean.
The emergence of Chinatown is because Chinese workers need to help each other in a foreign country, so they spontaneously live in the same area in groups, and later gradually formed the prototype of Chinatown. For example, the largest Chinatown in Laomei is located in San Francisco, which began around 1850, when Chinese laborers who came to the United States gathered to help each other because they were not familiar with the place and the language was different.
At first, it was formed as a living area for Chinese workers, and later Chinese restaurants were built here, and even attracted many locals. Later, the Chinese living area gradually grew, and there was a formal name such as "Chinatown", in which commerce began to flourish, and schools for Chinese children were established, and many Chinese traditions were preserved, including the New Year.
At its peak, San Francisco's Chinatown even became a popular tourist attraction, many old beauties are proud to have been to Chinatown, and there are many foreigners who come to San Francisco by car and plane just to see the style of Chinatown.
Many directors have also filmed stories set in Chinatown, which often have a strong Chinese element. Although these Chinese elements are somewhat stereotypical, they do promote the development of Chinese culture to a certain extent.
However, Chinatown, which has always been synonymous with prosperity and prosperity, seems to have begun to "decline" in the past two years.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="48" > the "decline" of Chinatown</h1>
A little history will show that Asians, or Chinese to be precise, have not always had a smooth life overseas. In the old United States, Asians have a more "low" status than blacks, and Chinese are the most discriminated against in the entire Asian ethnic group.
It's just that the "black and white dispute" of the old beauty has lasted the longest, lasted the most widely, and had the most far-reaching impact, so people's focus usually falls on this aspect; second, we have always been "gentle" Chinese, and we are a bit resigned. Even if foreigners throw dirty water on us for no reason, they will advocate self-reflection first. In addition, in the past, our country was not really strong and had no right to speak, resulting in the survival of chinese people abroad is very difficult.
The most widely known is probably the infamous "Chinese Exclusion Act", which has carved its own discrimination into the door of its head and written it into law. It wasn't until 2012 that Lao Mei apologized for the stupid law.
Later, with the continuous rise of our country, the waist plate of the Chinese was also straightened, but the Western world led by Lao Mei panicked, so it has been persistently pouring dirty water on us for all these years. Whenever Sino-US relations fall to the freezing point, Chinatown will become a little cooler, which is also a means of self-protection for overseas Chinese, and low-key behavior is the traditional habit of our Chinese nation.
However, this is not the real reason for the "decline" of Chinatown, in fact, one of the most practical reasons is the rise in rents. Shop owners saw that it was profitable so they kept increasing the rent of their homes, so many people had to move out.
In fact, this is to see Chinese bullying in a foreign country, because we are not good at making trouble, and we only hope that we can calm things down.
In addition, there is another big reason is that with the passage of time, the original group of overseas Chinese has entered the old age. Many of them came to Laomei in their prime, and the main purpose is to make a living, not that they do not have much deep feelings for Laomei, they are still concerned about the motherland in their hearts, and they also like the festivals, culture, and customs of the motherland; however, from generation to generation, today's young Chinese have grown up in Laomei, and they have no feelings for China, and China's traditional festivals and customs are just a lively one, just like we live in Western festivals, we will not pay much attention to it, that is, Tu Yile.
So gradually, Chinatown lost its original style, and the departure of young blood did give it a heavy blow.
Last year, the "black swan" broke out, and Lao Mei put some unwarranted hats on our heads,—— of course, the last to trace back to the roots of the earliest appearance was in Europe, but at that time the emotions of the old Americans were very high, if it were not for the black and white confrontation of this "traditional art" as a cover, I am afraid that the Chinese in the old United States will be more difficult.
So under the influence of multiple influences, many Chinese people chose to leave Chinatown, many people closed their shops, and Chinatown also fell into a depression.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="59" > conclusion</h1>
Today, the epidemic in Laomei is still very serious, and It is difficult for Chinatown to restore its former prosperity in the short term. As for whether its decline is temporary or long-term, no one can say for sure, but we can only hope that compatriots who are overseas and have their hearts set on the motherland can be safe and secure.