Deb loves Chinatown so it was a perfect time for us to experience the back alley areas off the main drag. A while back I took a stroll through Chinatown, but I mainly stayed to the main streets. Saturdays are probably the busiest day in Chinatown, but really what day isn't busy? Seriously, the produce markets get abused. If you want to buy some food you better start throwing bows. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of this in action, but can you imagine?!
Chinatown is perfect for window shopping... or gawking as I like to think of it. There are multiple fish markets with the most interesting fish I've ever seen. It was fascinating, I took some pictures with my phone.
I don't even know what you would call this store, but they have just about everything. For all I know the sign outside might have read "We Have Everything." Plus there are multiple stores that look just the same. With multiple produce markets, we-have-everything stores and fish markets you can get really turned around in Chinatown.
Deb filled us in on a little Chinese tradition. Well, not little this is huge in the Chinese culture. They actually have stores that sell paper items (clothes, food, money, etc.) that are meant to be burned on a small alter in remembrance of relatives that have passed. I think the purpose is to send these items to the relatives in heaven.
The one place I wanted to make sure we saw in Chinatown was the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory. When we found the back alley where it's located I was very surprised at how small and discreet it was. All the bird poop on the sign just adds to the sign.
The best part about this place (besides the crazy funny picture I took of Joe) was the charge for taking pictures. You might be able to see the sign in the picture... they charge 50 cents to take pictures. No problemo, we happened to have quarters thanks to the dollar bill we broke to pay the parking meter.
Chinatown still fascinates me. The culture there seems so pure, yet the area is pretty touristy. There's lots of history there dating back to the gold rush and 1906 earthquake.
The rest of our weekend went something like this: watching Iowa upset Michigan, shopping in the Mission District, picking out a great restaurant to eat supper at only to walk in the rain a couple blocks before deciding to turn back, settling on eating at Chevy's which turned out to be delicious, picking out a great restaurant to eat brunch at only to walk there and find out it doesn't open for another hour, settling on walking to Union Square and eating at Sear's Fine Foods (which really isn't settling because that place was delicious... and famous).
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