Shots of chefs preparing food in a Chinese restaurant
REPORTER
Australia no longer has the El Dorado, which attracted them in their tens of thousands in the gold rush days, but we've inherited the legacy they bring with them wherever they go. The traditional gift they offer - their quaint, to our palates, exotic cuisine.
Shots of people eating in a Chinese restaurant
REPORTER
(Ocker accent) 'Always eat where you see a Chinese eat. That way you'll know the food's fair dinkum.' Symptomatic perhaps of an inherently suspicious attitude towards an ethnically different co-citizen. A ubiquitously European attitude which, around the world, conveniently left the Chinese in a separate section of every city - a ghetto, known universally as 'Chinatown'. But in Melbourne at least, the scenario's changed. This is where Melbourne's Chinese society likes to eat out. But it's not within cooee of Chinatown. It's one of some 250 Chinese restaurants scattered like saffron rice through Melbourne suburbs. Chinatown is all but dead. Only about 20 of Melbourne's 5,000-strong Chinese community still live here.
Shots of people walking around the streets of Chinatown
REPORTER
The three-block section of Little Bourke which once bristled with Chinese shops, stores and cafes has shrunk into insignificance. Today it boasts a grand total of eight cafes and nine shops of assorted size.
Shot of Ron Wing walking down street towards camera
RON WING
I suppose you would say we are now integrated into Australian way of life. We really haven't had much choice.
REPORTER
Ron Wing, Melbourne's official Chinese interpreter, is probably the best-known spokesman for the Chinese community. He's President of the Chinese Community Society.
RON WING
In the days of Federation, we led a very isolated existence because, due to an immigrating law, families were separated. The law's still very strict. Because apart from the permanent resident who are permitted to bring out their immediate family, students have to return on completion of their education, and the only other Chinese admit are cooks, which makes it hardly worth the effort. We can't live our life in a ghetto forever.
REPORTER
Like 90% of Melbourne's Chinese, Ron Wing is of Cantonese origin. He came to Australia as a schoolboy 40 years ago, sent to live with his grandfather. He grew up to fall in love with an Australian girl and, as he puts it, the traditional roast beef and Yorkshire pud dinner she cooks every Sunday.
Shot of Ron Wing eating roast dinner with his family
RON WING
I've been eating Australian dishes for years now. And a good roast dinner like roast lamb and baked potatoes, just the seal to a good day. I suppose you could say this is a typical way we've all adjusted. We aren't market gardeners or greengrocers anymore. Our children are more ambitious. They go in for academic careers like medicine, architecture, or accountancy and the like. And as they mingle with European children, it is natural they adopt their interests, move away from the old traditions and customs. Take arranged marriage for an example. They are the thing of the past. And if you take a look round at the footy matches and the races, even cricket, you will see Australian Chinese friends - they are barracking with the best of them.
Shot of Ron Wing addressing his wife over the dinner table
RON WING
This is lovely. That's what your great-grandfather would say... (Speaks Cantonese)
Shot of young Chinese boy speaking in a language class
TEACHER
No, this word is not correct. You're to say... (Speaks Cantonese)
REPORTER
The community still uses Little Bourke Street as its focal point for community activities, such as this Cantonese language class, but they're gradually declining in support. The problem, particularly with language, is that while Cantonese may be the language of the elder relatives, it doesn't help much with dealings abroad, where Mandarin is the accepted lingua franca.
Shot of teacher writing in Cantonese on a chalkboard
REPORTER
The community which numbered 10,000 some 30 years ago is now outnumbered 2-1 by ethnic Chinese on student visas, yet there's little common ground between the Malaysian and Singaporean Chinese and their Melbourne cousins. The students have their own favourite restaurant in Lonsdale Street where they gather outside lecture time to gossip. The cafe offers special Chinese delicacies like bak go and shumai, which aren't available elsewhere.
Shots of Chinese food being brought to a table in a restaurant
REPORTER
But there's a bigger reason behind this voluntary segregation. Ron Wing again.
RON WING
The students don't mix in much with us because we really don't have that much in common. They speak different dialects, like Hokkien, Hakka and Mandarin, but we speak Cantonese. They have different interests, different backgrounds. It's like American versus the British. To us, these students are different people.
Shots of Chinese parade in Melbourne
REPORTER
Despite this entrenched identification with Australian life however, there's still a deep respect for the old Chinese traditions and customs. But even this, too, has an Australian rapprochement. Perhaps the best example of it is the annual Bendigo Easter parade of Sun Loong.
Close-up shot of Sun Loong dragon in parade
REPORTER
Sun Loong, claimed as the world's biggest dragon, arrived two years ago from Hong Kong to replace a centenarian dragon, long overdue for retirement. His arrival was the fulfilment of a nine-month long quest by an Australian-born journalist, John Ball. Sun Loong's dance epitomises the new background to an old tradition. Peter Liu, President of Melbourne's Chinese Youth Society, sees it this way.
PETER LIU
The dragon and lion dances were basically old folk dances for the farmers to celebrate their harvest time. Our dancing in Australian festivals like Moomba and Bendigo's Easter parade is sort of similar. But, hey, I suppose you could say we are honouring the old Chinese miners who helped to put this city and the whole state on the map... to help raise money for those who are not as well off as we are. Last year, for example, we raised nearly $3,000 for Euroa Hospital. It's our own thing, but by doing it, we're making a worthwhile contribution to the community we live in.
REPORTER
Of course there's still a very close awareness of events in the mother country. With Chinese anywhere around the world, there's a dream that China will soon be an Asian unified again.
PETER LIU
My feeling towards China is as strong as many Australians feel towards Mother England, but that's my feeling for China. My feeling for Australia is different. Australia is my home. I consider myself more Australian than Chinese. I cannot feel more.
REPORTER
And another Australian, Leonard Kwong.
LEONARD KWONG
We still respect those traditions as handed down by the Chinese and, as such, we'd like to see a free China, a united China, but irrespective of who reigns, we'd like to see freedom to visit China at any time. We're more interested, however, in building a free Australia because I'm as Australian as anyone, being a third-generation Australian Chinese and I would expect that there will be many more to follow.