San Fran Travelogue

Chinatowns in most cities might sound or seem like small districts, but in San Fran it's the largest of its kind in America, its roots having taken hold as far back as the Gold Rush era – a Chinese immigration

that resulted in a substantial, hard-working population that has gained ground as the years have gone by.  Chinatown is both hyper-eclectic, but in its own way also generic in the sense that most storefronts along the most important causeway, Grant Avenue, are not much more than retail shops trying to sell

trinkets or, in some other cases, nice Oriental antiques.  One way or another, to walk through Chinatown is similar to walking through the Japanese Tea Garden in that you know you are certainly experiencing something quite authentic and different.  From our own hotel on the Embarcadero, Chinatown was only about a

mile or so up the hill, so to speak, through the financial district at the famous TransAmerica building and up the grades to Grant Avenue, where the trade begins and the old murals on the sidewalls remind you that this neighborhood is essentially as old any other in town.  The storekeeper are extremely

friendly and conscientious of even the smallest products.  All interiors are clean and well-kept.  The smell of noodles and spicy chicken emanates from every corner.  Small paper lamps parade the

streetline and before you know it, you are at a crossroads at the end of Grant where the only genuine Chinese Gate in America ends the district and moves, just across the block, to Union Square, the most prestigious shopping district in the city.