It is not difficult to find a Chinatown in major cities around the world. CNNGo magazine has compiled a list of the best Chinatowns on the planet where you can find the most colorful Lunar New Year parades, fireworks, lion dances, as well as good food. The main ones are in Asia and the Pacific, two in the Americas and one in the UK , Africa and the Caribbean.
The one in Havana , Cuba, known as Havana’s Chinatown, was the largest in Latin America in the 1840s when Chinese workers were brought in to work on the sugar plantations . There came a time when there were about 50,000 Chinese in Cuba before leaving for the United States after Fidel Castro’s revolution in 1959. Currently, about 150 Cuban-Chinese natives remain on the island.
In Kolkata , India, Chinese immigrants, mostly from southern China, came to the city to escape the war of the 19th century. Taoist temples can still be found in some areas of the city. Chinese food is still a very popular cuisine in Kolkata, where one can find very specific ingredients. Another Chinatown that you should know is Bangkok , Thailand.
It is known as Yaowarat , and resembles that of Hong Kong. Again, food is one of the main attractions. Bangkok Food Tours, for example, offer a "Chinatown Foodie tour" that takes visitors to a total of seven restaurants where they can sample great dishes.