This is Fantan Alley, in Chinatown in Victoria, B.C. The sense of its dark past, of gambling palaces
and opium dens, still clings to the narrow passageway, even on the brightest days. Victoria’s Chinatown 
s the oldest in Canada, and Fantan is a glimpse of what life must have been like for thousands of
chinese immigrants who originally came to labour on the first Trans-Canada Railroad. I was in
China 25 years ago. At that time, the alleys of China were similar to Fantan. And despite China’s growth,
I’ll bet they still look the same. It takes time to change thousands of years of lifestyle.   Mark Heine