Mellybutton here! I will be your tourguide for this Chinatown Adventure, as it was experienced by Cara and myself in the heart of San Francisco. Welcome to Chinatown's bustling streets! Among many sights, you will encounter unique gift shops, tea houses, and and array of foods both interesting and odd (dehydrated fish, anyone?)! Smell the delicious aromas of herbs, tea, and as many different kinds of asian cuisine as you can imagine!
Perhaps the most charming thing about Chinatown that Cara and I noticed was its abundance of interesting strangers. We heard so many different languages being spoken that we decided we could pass for tourists visiting from England... and proceeded to speak only in English accent (or, at least
I did. Heehee). We walked past wizened Chinese men playing checkers on the sidewalk, and tried to act casual so Cara could get some photos of them in action without looking like a gawking tourist. I think we were pretty sneaky about it. We also spotted our first lovely, fashionable stranger while headed to lunch, and Cara's camera loved her.
(see photos on Flickr)
Our lunch at House of Nanking was delicious - Cara ordered the Wonton Soup, and I had the recommended Sesame Chicken (I think?), with some delectable fruit tea. Yum! After an entirely rainy morning, the clouds began to part, and we had the fortune of enjoying some natural lighting from our window seats. (NOTE: Our first mission in Chinatown was to find umbrellas to combat the dreary rain... we found some that were perfect!... and never got to use them. OF COURSE the rain would stop just AFTER we found umbrellas! It's only logical.)
I think my favorite part about our Chinatown visit was the tea house "tea tasting" that we stumbled upon. Imagine wine tasting, only much healthier, and even more entertaining! We were seated at a bar among about a hundred varieties of tea from China, along with the daintiest little porcelain tea sets! The tea "bartenders" were as skilled in making us laugh as they were at brewing tea, and we truly enjoyed our stay there. We must have tried 10-15 different kinds of tea! (which, in turn, forced us to find the nearest restaurant later on in Little Italy just to use their restroom... but that's another story!) Then, we were ready to set off to Fisherman's Wharf. More stories from SF are yet to come! Until next time, folks!
