I like walking around an area where I can feel like a foreigner. It makes me feel independent. I feel unique, somehow. I get the same sensation when I�m in Ecuador or the Philippines or somewhere like that. It�s like going somewhere exotic in your own town.

Buddybee and I went up to Chinatown a couple of times last week. It�s his attempt at cultural diversity. He married a Chinese woman so he thinks he�s enlightened. In reality, he only admires Chinese women when they�re naked and has just as many prejudices about Chinese culture - or any other culture - as anyone else. Don�t get me wrong. I like naked Chinese women as well but I�d like to think there�s more to Chinese culture than that.

But I digress.

We went to a couple of restaurants, our favourite trinket shop - they have the greatest little clay teapots there. We also went to a sort of Chinese apocethary or drugstore. I can spend hours in a place like that. Just name the item and they�ve got it. There are shark fins, little dried out seahorses, some kind of natural foam, all kinds of fungus, little jars of all kinds of things. I�m sure if you asked for bear bile (illegal in most of North America) they�d probably have it. We�ll, maybe you�d have to at least look Chinese - which I absolutely don�t.

I haven�t been to any of the big Chinatowns like San Fransisco but I have been to the ones in Vancouver and Toronto. When I was about eight years old, I remember going to Chinatown in Montreal with my aunt T and some old uncle that I only met that once. I remember being fascinated with that place - all the rich colours and smells.

Chinatown in Montreal was huge back then. They tore a big chunk out of it for Expo �67 and an even bigger chunk out for the �76 Olympics. Now it�s just a shadow of its former self. It only takes up about nine square blocks. It�s too bad really.