Arvin Joaquin, on May 17, 2017
Ling Yang stands in the corner of her store as she carefully puts small beads on a piece of thread. She looks up and smiles whenever customers enter, sometimes offering them a little nod and a timid greeting.Last year, Yang took over Chinese Zodiac Gifts and Souvenirs, a 13-year-old establishment in Vancouver’s Chinatown and on a gloomy Saturday such as this, she busies herself making bracelets and listening to soft traditional Chinese music.
“I like this store…. I want to keep it for the future because it’s a very traditional Chinese style,” Yang says as she points out the store’s proximity to Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. “I want to keep Chinese traditional things forever and it’s a good thing for visitors.”
Yang’s not the only one who wants to keep Vancouver’s Chinese history and traditions alive.
In the Chinese Cultural Centre next door, people gathered May 13 to celebrate the unveiling of plaques that honour the national historic significance of Vancouver’s Chinatown, as well as Wong Foon Sien and Nellie Yip Quong, two key figures who helped shaped not only Chinatown, but also the lives of Chinese-Canadian immigrants.
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