"A Wok Around Chinatown" - Vancouver

     On our first full day in Vancouver, British Columbia, we took a four-hour long history and food walking tour of Chinatown.  It was led by Robert (Bob) Sung, a third-generation Chinese-Canadian with a long family history of work in the food and hospitality industry.  Bob himself has been a cook and a culinary instructor, but he has been conducting tours of Chinatown for nearly 20 years.  "A Wok Around Chinatown" proved to be one of the best tours that we've ever taken.

    We met Bob at the Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden, a re-creation of a Ming dynasty era garden home, first opened to the public in 1986.  One of Vancouver's top tourist attractions, it was built by Chinese craftsmen using ancient methods (The elaborate woodwork uses no nails or fasteners, just traditional pegs and grooves.) and building materials imported from China.  There, Bob gave us a crash course in Chinese philosophies, explaining how the architecture and landscaping reflected various elements of the culture.  (Dr. Sun Yat Sen Classical Garden )

    Then, our walk began.  First stop was the Chinese Canadian Museum which just opened in 2023 inside the oldest brick building in Chinatown, the Wing Sang building that formerly housed the business of merchant Yip Sang.  The museum's spaces include a period classroom and art and history exhibits that tell the story of Canada's Chinese immigrants from their arrival in the 19th century to work on the railroads and to mine for gold.  Chinese Canadian history mirrors much of Chinese American history.  Thousands of single Chinese men immigrated during the second half of the 19th century, drawn by the dream of making their fortunes, sending money back to their families, and maybe returning with their wealth.  Some did make money, a few even became wealthy (mostly by managing - or exploiting - their countrymen), but the majority found segregation, racism, and hardship.  The aforementioned Yip Sang became a very wealthy man and a political and social activist.  He made his fortune in real estate, the import/export business, and by procuring labor for the Canadian Pacific Railway Company.  Chinese Canadians weren't given the right to vote until 1947. ( Chinese Canadian Museum)

    Of course, this is a food tour too, and the food was terrific.  We made several stops seeing and sampling all sorts of delicious pastries and dishes, ending up at the Jade Dynasty restaurant for a sit-down dim sum lunch.    The tour ends at The Chinese Tea Shop where Daniel, the proprietor, gave us a full course on traditional Chinese tea culture, serving us the most delicious hot tea that we've ever had. ( Tea Shop )

    One of the most interesting stops was at a traditional Chinese apothecary.  At first glance, it looks like a grocery, filled with bins and jars of various dried animal and plant parts, including various fungi, worms, sea cucumbers and other sea creatures, and even dried whole geckos on sticks.  How does it work?  An ill person would go to a traditional medicine practitioner and describe his or her symptoms.  The practitioner would then write a prescription to be filled by the store's clerks who then assemble the ingredients.  The patient then boils a broth of the ingredients to drink.  

    Our "Wok Around Chinatown" was definitely a highlight of our trip, and we highly recommend that you contact Bob Sung whenever you visit Vancouver.  Information here Robert Sung Tours