CRI听力:Chinese Help Rebuild New York

Anna Lou and her mother show me around the kitchen of their Chinese restaurant in southwest Manhattan. The building's located in a classy area close to the World Trade Center. But just a few years ago the property lay derelict in an area still suffering from the 9/11 terrorist attack. Owner Marianna Lou explains.

"After 9/11 a lot of space downtown was closed. Because here was so much dust and dirt. A lot of people had to move out from here because the whole area here was empty, no one here. Many places downtown were closed, here, too."

The building's located in an area called Battery Park City. It used to be a Chinese restaurant before 9/11, catering for many workers from the World Trade Centre. But after the terrorist attack it had to close. Anna Lou is the owner's daughter.

"A lot of their clientele came from the two buildings that came down, so a lot of people that worked there would come here for lunch. Then after 9/11 I think this whole Battery Park City was covered in dust and sediment from the buildings. So a lot of people evacuated the area and the government even had to pay subsidies to persuade people to stay here in their apartments instead of moving away to another city or state."

These subsidies helped the current owners start their business. Now, several years on, the place is just one of several smart restaurants looking across the Hudson River towards the Statue of Liberty. But it shares another link with 9/11, as waiter Tony Tom used to serve food at the top of the World Trade Center in the 1970s. So, for him the 10th anniversary of 9/11 is even more poignant.

"I feel sad of course. I didn't expect to see anything like that in my life. I didn't expect to see anything like that in America. Impossible. I could find these things on the TV but not in reality. I didn't expect a plane to hit the World Trade Center. That was... I can't describe my feeling, you known what I'm saying?"

Just a few blocks away by the World Trade Center you can feel a resurgence of energy as businesses return and new buildings are constructed. It's a recovery towards which the Chinese have also played their part.

Reporting for CRI in New York, I'm Dominic Swire.