San Francisco Chinatown: an Unparalleled Place to Appreciate Chinese Culture in America
San Francisco Chinatown in a most densely populated California neighborhood is said to be the oldest Chinatown in North America and the largest Chinese community outside Asia. This area is pretty popular among tourists and local people because they expect something in this place that won't be found anywhere else and they wish to be astonished, enchanted and absorbed by exotic culture, attracted to unique items and stuffed with delicious food. Well, they will.
They can feel Chinese culture in every corner of this area since it is home to many great shops and stores that sell expensive treasures and cheap ornaments as well. This electrifying world offers some of the best bargains, like T-shirt and books. Silk fabrics, hand-painted porcelains, craved chopsticks and other items with Chinese features serve as wonderful gifts and souvenirs. There are also herbal shops selling the ingredients for traditional Chinese medicine. Some of these are no where to be found except in the Chinatown.
When entering a street, they will be bombarded by people handing menus to urge guests to come to the inside of their restaurants. Kind of scared, right? Well, this is nothing more than the Chinese way of doing business. But the food is really delicious and there are many cruises, like Chuan cruise, Cantonese cruise and others to choose from. These restaurants are divided into several types, the formal ones, affordable ones and specialty ones. Some feature sinicized decoration styles with corresponding services.
Besides these, there are many other places to appreciate the deep cultural significance in San Francisco Chinatown. Tourists are suggested to wander around the alleys throughout this area, like Waverly Place, Spofford Alley and Ross Alley, which are very interesting and housing some social clubs or factories. A stroll around the Portsmouth Square will endow you with a deep understanding of San Francisco history while the Chinese Historical Society of American and the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco are always the must-visit places for those who show some interest in the early Chinese immigrants to America and their life.