h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The city I live in, Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, seems to exist only as land for shopping malls to attract people from nearby Vancouver. In the last 10 years there has been an enormous immigration of Asians into the area (they are now 42% of the population of Richmond) so we now have, The Yao Han Center, Parker Place, The Aberdeen Center and others. In these malls you will not find a single chain store. No Gap or Fairweather or Payless Shoe Source, instead they are full of small shops selling a variety of goods and inside their crowded hallways you will find little if any written English and and hear little spoken as well. You can buy Bubble Tea and Soy Milk drinks and all sorts of exotic food and drink. Lots of women's clothing of course but in sizes, styles and colours not found elsewere. And outside the West entrance of the Yao Han Center there is large Buddhist statue covered in mirror tile mosaic with flower, fruit and other offerings all around.
They are a lovely addition the otherwise bland collection of malls populating the area.