Portrait of Chinatown in Inchon, South Korea:

"Of all the ``official’’ and ``unofficial’’ foreign communities in Korea, perhaps none are more prominent and historical than Inchon’s very own Chinatown.

Located opposite Inchon Station, the history of Inchon's Chinatown dates back to the opening of the Chinese Consulate in 1884 and Chemulpo Port. During the 1940s, Chinatown enjoyed its largest share of the Inchon economy by trading Chinese silk, oriental medicine herbs, and chinaware. It reached a population of more than 10,000 inhabitants and was crowded with hundreds of Chinese restaurants.

However, the Korean War, followed by regulations against the Chinese in the 1960s shrank the area from its previous glory, and now the area is just a small town. Today though, Chinatown has undergone a major restoration and renaissance which has restored some of its former glory while encouraging more growth as well as tourism."