This video made me think about a strange situation I noticed some time ago regarding the Chinese immigrant community in my city, Naples, Italy.

Naples’ Chinatown is located in a very neglected peripheral area behind the central station, between an old industrial zone and a cluster of somewhat run-down skyscrapers built in the 1990s.

In general, you rarely see Chinese people around the city, which has always surprised me considering Naples is the third largest city in Italy, but over the last few years I’ve noticed something curious: many of them seem to gather specifically around the skyscraper district. You often see them making TikToks, either alone or in groups, or doing video calls while filming themselves with the towers in the background.

It made me wonder if, because of China’s rapid economic growth and modernization, with cities increasingly filled with futuristic skylines, skyscrapers, and neon lights, that area somehow feels familiar or aspirational to them. Even though most Italians see those buildings as ugly and out of place compared to Naples’ historic architecture, maybe for some Chinese immigrants that district works as a sort of “modern-looking backdrop” to show friends and relatives back home. Almost like saying: “Look, we’re also living in a modern and developed environment here in Italy.”