A smorgabord of different cultural cuisines. | Photo by Richard Masones

I was born in Vancouver, and both sides of my family date back four generations from Great Britain. Being born in Vancouver, I was fortunate to have experienced multiculturalism from birth. I grew up next to South Asian neighbours who taught my mother how to make Indian food and gave us customary gifts for my birthday and Christmas. My other neighbours included East Asians, Africans and a Bulgarian family. In my local playground, there were children of many nationalities whom I would regularly play with.

Every week, beginning when I was just a toddler in a high chair, my family would go to our favourite Indian restaurant on Fraser Street. My family also had a favourite Chinese restaurant in our neighbourhood that served authentic Schezwan cuisine. As I got older I also experienced Chinese culture through many excursions to Chinatown as well as celebrating Chinese New Year at my elementary school.

One memorable experience for me occurred in sixth grade when I went to the birthday party of an immigrant classmate from Taiwan, where I was exposed to Taiwanese food and art. Years later, I was lucky enough to participate in an authentic Japanese tea ceremony at UBC during my undergraduate years. I also shared a love of Chinese and Japanese culture with my mother – the ubiquitous presence of ethnic shops in Vancouver ensured that we could indulge in that love.

I don’t think I appreciated the multiculturalism of Vancouver growing up, but now, as an adult, I do appreciate the global microcosm that makes the city unique. This global microcosm has made Canada a more welcoming place for immigrants, as anyone from around the world can maintain their own culture while also adopting Canadian values and beliefs. It has also made immigrants more open to other cultures in a way that could not be accomplished in their home countries.

For myself, it has made me more curious about other cultures, so much so that I am currently teaching myself to speak Chinese and Japanese. The best part is that I do not have to go to China and Japan to experience the cultures: I can go to Chinatown or Old Japantown in Vancouver. That is another part of the uniqueness of Vancouver’s multiculturalism, the variety of cultures and languages that are in our own backyard. I believe that I would be less tolerant and open minded towards other ethnicities and cultures if I didn’t grow up in a multicultural city like Vancouver.

Sadly, some established Canadians may feel overwhelmed by our new immigrants, as I have read in online complaints about specific immigrant groups. However, it should be remembered that Canada is a nation of immigrants. Canada needs new immigrants to maintain our services for our growing retiring population and to support our social programs. Some Canadians also believe that there are ethnic enclaves, which are both geographic and social in nature. However, we must remember that everyone in Canada was an immigrant at one point and they tend to move to areas that are similar to their homeland. For example, people from London, England would naturally want to move to urban centres, specifically an English neighbourhood like North Vancouver. Similarly, when Asians immigrate to Canada, they feel more comfortable in the larger cities and tend to seek out familiarity, like Chinatown. As their kids grow up, they may marry spouses of European descent and choose to live elsewhere.

In short, my experience with multiculturalism has been positive. Our recent immigrants are going to contribute to society by strengthening our country economically and enriching us culturally.