Inside China’s Little Africa (Ep. 3) | Food, Hustle & Scams in Guangzhou

This recent video takes viewers through Xiaobei, Guangzhou’s best-known African commercial area. Moving between restaurants, street markets and businesses, Zimbabwean vlogger Harmony2nd encounters traders and residents from Nigeria, Uganda, Cameroon, South Africa and elsewhere, while sampling food from across the African continent.

Beyond the food-tour format, the video offers an interesting glimpse into the everyday life of Xiaobei today. African traders talk about travelling back and forth between China and their home countries, doing business in Guangzhou, visa difficulties and some of the challenges they encounter. At the same time, the restaurants, shops and late-night street life show a neighbourhood that remains remarkably transnational—not only African and Chinese, but also connected to South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

For those who have followed Xiaobei for many years, the video also offers an opportunity to see how the area continues to change while retaining its role as an important node in African–Chinese transnational trade and social life.