Vancouver's Chinatown wasn’t part of my original itinerary, nor was it included when I planned my trip to Vancouver back in 2012. So, visiting Chinatown was completely unplanned, purely a coincidence during the journey. I happened to meet a lady from Hong Kong while on the way; she had relatives who had immigrated to Vancouver for many years, and she would occasionally visit her friends and family in Canada. We struck up a conversation while heading from Stanley Park to the Steam Clock, so we decided to travel together.
Afterward, she wanted to visit her relatives in Chinatown, and I accompanied her because I happened to have a map to help navigate (back then, Google Maps didn’t have offline maps). That’s how I ended up in Chinatown. As I recall, the Sino United Publishing bookstore in Vancouver was run by one of her relatives, and it had been open for decades. After a brief chat, I left and headed to a nearby BBQ restaurant they recommended for a simple dinner before heading back to my accommodation.
I didn’t spend much time in Chinatown, just briefly strolling along the main streets. Overall, it was quite clean and orderly compared to the Chinatowns in some other cities. However, there weren’t many people around, possibly because it was nearing the evening. Another reason I didn’t stay longer was that the bookstore owner I spoke with advised me not to linger in Chinatown after dark. He suggested that if I wanted dinner, I should eat quickly and leave right away. So, I quickly finished my BBQ meal and took the SkyTrain back to my accommodation.
Because of this, I felt a bit uneasy as I searched for the way to the station, as if there were unsettling gazes from the shadows, especially as the sky darkened. It’s definitely safer to travel with company rather than alone. If you ask me whether Chinatown is worth visiting as a tourist attraction, I’d say there are livelier Chinese neighborhoods that are better options. It might be better to visit those instead of here.
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