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Visit Chinatown
- By Raghav Ramful
- Published 1st May, 2008
- Discover Mauritius
- Unrated
Chinese traders set up shops in the city’s more prosperous quarters along Royal Street, where they sold porcelain, eau de cologne and wines. They also established smaller retail shops that supplied ordinary products to customers who came from all over the island. There were other wholesale and retail shops that sold products related to fisheries and marine activities.
According to reports, some Chinese transported fruits and vegetables for sale in Chinatown. Some of them were market gardeners and the loads they bore balanced on their shoulders, giving one a high opinion of their physical strength.
The Chinese likewise traded pigs and pork products. Pigs were imported from Rodrigues Island and some merchants bought swine from Creole farmers in the Port Louis area.
Chinatown became famous locally because of the availability of inexpensive, ready-made foods. Dock workers were regular clients of these roadside cafés and restaurants. There were four famous restaurants that were popular among dockers: ‘Gros Piti’ along Emmanuel Anquetil Street, ‘Ah Kee’ at the corner of La Paix Street and Royal Street, Chu Fung Leung and ‘Madame Tayer’ along Royal Street. Other shops
sold festival cakes and other small items. There were also hawkers all along Anquetil Street who sold Chinese fast foods like Boulette, Saw Mai etc. Chinese fast-foods have survived and are now very popular and hawkers have posted themselves at almost every street corner in Chinatown.
Chinese immigrants to Mauritius came mainly from Kwangtung (Canton),
Nam Hai and Shuntak. The Hakkas originated from Cahin Chu and Meishien. Among one of the most important traders located in Chinatown at that time was Hahime Log Chosianne who owned many shops and large warehouses. Chin Ton arrived with the first group of Hakkas in 1860. Louis Affan Tank Wen arrived from Canton in 1861. Ng Chen Hin was the oldest member of the Ng clan who arrived from Canton in 1870.
Chinese diaspora
Chinese traders were also in contact with companies in Calcutta, Pondicherry and Madras in India. Some of them would become their official representatives in Mauritius. These important connections led to the creation of commercial networks between Asia and Mauritius and local Chinese traders were assured of guaranteed sources of supply that were cheaper than elsewhere.
As early as 1844, one Chinese merchant acquired a schooner to trade between Mauritius and South-East Asian Ports.
The Chinese community was also keen on getting updated with news from their motherland. Traders depended originally on ships coming from China for news. Recent news was reported in newspapers that were bought by all Chinese immigrants, even those in rural areas. The traditional system of printing is still being used and a good example of a Chinese language printing press can be seen along Emmanuel Anquetil Street.
Doctors migrated from China and opened Chinese medical stores. They trained members of their own families to take over their businesses. These doctors learned the science of herbal cure, natural therapies and acupuncture. There are still a handful of Chinese who practise these traditional disciplines.
One cannot talk about Chinatown without mentioning the gambling dens in that area. Gambling dens once formed part of Chinatown and contributed to its reputation. Local Chinese, dock workers, foreigners and sailors were regular visitors to these dens. There are only a few of these gaming houses that are still operational in Chinatown. The rest have been abandoned because of regular raids by the police for illicit activities linked to prostitution and drugs.
According to reports, some Chinese transported fruits and vegetables for sale in Chinatown. Some of them were market gardeners and the loads they bore balanced on their shoulders, giving one a high opinion of their physical strength.
The Chinese likewise traded pigs and pork products. Pigs were imported from Rodrigues Island and some merchants bought swine from Creole farmers in the Port Louis area.Chinatown became famous locally because of the availability of inexpensive, ready-made foods. Dock workers were regular clients of these roadside cafés and restaurants. There were four famous restaurants that were popular among dockers: ‘Gros Piti’ along Emmanuel Anquetil Street, ‘Ah Kee’ at the corner of La Paix Street and Royal Street, Chu Fung Leung and ‘Madame Tayer’ along Royal Street. Other shops
sold festival cakes and other small items. There were also hawkers all along Anquetil Street who sold Chinese fast foods like Boulette, Saw Mai etc. Chinese fast-foods have survived and are now very popular and hawkers have posted themselves at almost every street corner in Chinatown.Chinese immigrants to Mauritius came mainly from Kwangtung (Canton),
Chinese diaspora
Chinese traders were also in contact with companies in Calcutta, Pondicherry and Madras in India. Some of them would become their official representatives in Mauritius. These important connections led to the creation of commercial networks between Asia and Mauritius and local Chinese traders were assured of guaranteed sources of supply that were cheaper than elsewhere.
As early as 1844, one Chinese merchant acquired a schooner to trade between Mauritius and South-East Asian Ports.
The Chinese community was also keen on getting updated with news from their motherland. Traders depended originally on ships coming from China for news. Recent news was reported in newspapers that were bought by all Chinese immigrants, even those in rural areas. The traditional system of printing is still being used and a good example of a Chinese language printing press can be seen along Emmanuel Anquetil Street.
Doctors migrated from China and opened Chinese medical stores. They trained members of their own families to take over their businesses. These doctors learned the science of herbal cure, natural therapies and acupuncture. There are still a handful of Chinese who practise these traditional disciplines.
One cannot talk about Chinatown without mentioning the gambling dens in that area. Gambling dens once formed part of Chinatown and contributed to its reputation. Local Chinese, dock workers, foreigners and sailors were regular visitors to these dens. There are only a few of these gaming houses that are still operational in Chinatown. The rest have been abandoned because of regular raids by the police for illicit activities linked to prostitution and drugs.
