The Fortune Cookie Chronicles


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    Las Vegas “Chinatown,” Giant Mall Developments For Miles on End

    Sunday, June 13th, 2010

    I finally witnessed the famed Las Vegas “Chinatown” for the first time — which is a series of very large strip malls with Chinese and assorted other Asian businesses on Spring Mountain Road. The original called Chinatown Plaza (pictured above), which is anchored by a Ranch 99. The strip mall was conceived by Taiwanese American developer […]

    The Chinese Restaurant Workers’ View of America: Through Area Codes. Chinatown Bus Ads

    Monday, February 2nd, 2009

    These two are Chinatown bus advertisements for routes that go to the more obscure regions of the eastern United States. (Chinatown bus goes all over, not just Boston, NYC, Philly and Washington). Notice how they emphasize the area codes. That is because many Fujianese restaurant workers are not educated and thus don’t really read and […]

    Sea Cucumbers? One of the most misleadingly named creatures on the Chinese menu?

    Friday, December 28th, 2007

    I was out with my friend Robin the other day for lunch in Chinatown when she started talking about her experience with sea cucumbers. Sea cucumbers have this soft chewy jelly-like consistency. Robin had eaten them in Chinese restaurants and had never know they were moving creatures like the one above until her brother sent […]