Paris is such a multicultural city, that in some parts, you can almost think you are no longer even in France. Such was the case last sunday when I attended the parade celebrating the Chinese New Year.
Paris’s largest and most famous Chinatown is in the 13 th arrondissement. Mandarin scroll adorns every storefront, with one Asian restaurant or commerce after another lining both sides of Avenue d’Ivry and Choisy in the Chinese triangle there.
When I was a student here many moons ago, there wasn’t any Chinatown in the 13th. Most Asian restaurants back then were Vietnamese, and located in the Latin Quarter, and Chinese ones in the 3rd, which is the oldest Chinese community. Paris was really different back then, as you rarely saw other ethnicities.
It was in the seventies that “boat people” of Chinese origin flooded in from mainland China and Ido China. Most settled in the 13th arrondissements and before long Chinatown took root. Even though it remains the most colorful Asian enclave, most of the Chinese residents have moved out to the suburbs with the rest going to Belleville in the 19th and 20th, where there was also a parade.
The riveting sound and smell of firecrackers permeated the air even before the parade had begun. Chinese and Asian families of various generations filled the blocked off streets, along with throngs of other Parisians who came especially for all the festivities. Children clutching huge helium balloons bounced around my head.
Bronzed lacquered ducks hung in waiting in butcher shops and brightly colored Asian pastries sold briskly. A cake roll of the odorous durian fruit caught my eye, which is more Laotian/Thai.
This year is the year of the snake, which is one of the 12 animals that make up the Chinese Zodiac. These animal symbols have nothing to do with planetary constellations, but rather with attributed behavior associated with these animals and reptiles.
Those born under the snake are said to have wisdom, good luck and longevity and get along the best with the Rooster,Ox and Dog. The Chinese Zodiac is ancient and is often used in love matching.
The Chinese new year is the largest holiday in Asian countries of China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and the Philippines that have a large population of Chinese orgin. It has been described as being like our Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving all rolled into one, in so far as family gathering and feasting is assured and expected.
The color red predominates because it symbolises good fortune and is said the color red chases away bad spirits and bad fortune. Red envelopes stuffed with money are given to children and others. The holiday season extends for 15 days where it culminates in the Lantern Festival.
Throughout the rest of the year, Chinatown draws many tourists and locals alike looking for the latest hot Asian restaurant or heading towards the many Asian food markets and cookware establishment.
If you are searching for the most varied of all Asian foods, full of exotic fruits and vegetables, then Les Frères Tang’s massive store is the place to go. Impeccably fresh seafood and meats are there too with some of the best prices in Paris.
Tang, along with Asia Store are my favorites to just browse up and down the aisles, filling my basket with items not found elsewhere. The majority of the vegetables , along with their names, I am unfamiliar with. The smell of the rather dank durian fruits hits my nostril first. I have never dared buy one whole, but must admit to having enjoyed a durian pudding in a Laotian restaurants.
Despite all the festivities , there is a darker side to the Chinese migration to France. Accordingly, there are a lot of illegal Chinese immigrants, who are making up the work force in the sweatshops hidden in the 3rd,11th and 20 th arrondissements.
Forced to work long hours with little pay in order to pay back the dept paid to smugglers who got them in; most are in hiding our of fear of being caught. Other resorts to clandestine work in restaurants or even prostitution.
In Belleville, they have been the victims of aggressions from Muslim youth, who consider them easy and safe targets for robbery because it is said they carry mostly cash, and can not go to the police to report these crimes out of fear of deportation.
Those, who have integrated legally into French society often make up the merchants of valise and leather merchandise, restauranteurs, and green grocers that generally offer the best quality of fruits and vegetables at the best price.
Though most view the snake as vile, treacherous tricksters and even evil, mostly due to the Judeo Christian interpretation of the serpent and Adam and Eve, other cultures see different.
American Indians see the snake as being a symbol of rebirth, fertility or transmutation on a cosmic level. African animists see the serpent as being a messenger between the world of the living and the dead.
The one I personally identify with the most is the Caduceus . With a staff intertwined by two serpents, it resembles a double helix DNA and is always associated with the healing professions. The rod of Asclepius had just one snake but the Greek God Hermes had two.
So whether you prefer a Chinese, American Indian or Greek perspective, I think we could all embrace, wisdom, rebirth, longevity and healing! So again my fellow travelers, Happy New Year!