San Francisco - Day 1 - Touchdown, Chinatown

We touched down in San Francisco International Airport at 10.30 am. The customs and baggage claim wasn't too much of a hassle. We then took a sky train to the airport car rental area to pick up our car.

The road system was a little daunting as we had to drive on the right side of the road! A tape recording looped in our heads repeating, "Stick to right lane. Stick to right lane. Stick to right lane." Our nerves calm down after we got used to the road system.

Heading into the city, I notice many HUGE cars on the road, cars that I've never seen in Australia. There were many big American SUVS - none of these exist in Australia.

We finally arrive at our destination and we parked our car in a car garage (In America, they used the term 'car garage' as oppose to 'car park complex'. I found it really strange at first.) We then checked in to our hotel.

After settling in for a bit, we then head to Chinatown to scout for food. I was starving at this point. We walked to Chinatown which was about 15 minutes away. On this walk, it dawned upon me that San Francisco is pretty hilly! Who needs the gym when you can get a good exercise from just from walking up and down the city.

Upon seeing Chinatown, I was pretty impressed. It was huge. It's apparently the biggest Chinatown outside Asia. Walking around Chinatown, I kept telling J, "It feels like we are in China!"

Chinatown is always bursting with life during the day. You can find all these different types of chinese herbs, preserved food and sun-dried fish. The produce the shops sell always look so fresh. You can even buy fish that are still swimming in plastic cartons. Or watch old people play ancient chinese instruments or chinese checkers on road pavements. The exterior of the buildings are painted with vibrant colours – green, red, blue, gold complete with Chinese scribblings. It's so chinese! And there’s so many different varieties of tidbits to nibble on - char siew pow, take-away tim sum and many different types of chinese cakes. I watched this documentary which interviewed a Chinese guy walking around San Francisco chinatown. He said, "Char Siew Pow is like a hamburger for a Chinese person." Hilarious.

Compare this to the Chinatown in Melbourne consist of only ONE street with a couple of small dingy lanes branching out from that ONE street, which Melbournian would not be impressed?


#1

Chinatown main entrance on Grant Street

#2


#3

Chinese-y things

#4

Oriental fans

#5

See no evil, hear no evil, talk no evil

#6

We are definitely in China

#7

Dried fish

#8

Chinese bakery

#9

Chinese-looking cakes

#10

Interestingly, take-away dim sum is a trend in this Chinatown (as oppose to eating in)

#11

Selling fish on the pavement. This reminds me of Hanoi.


I was absolutely fascinated with the fire escapes, evident on almost every building I saw in San Francisco. Being an old and established city, fire escapes are an inescapable feature of the buildings facade.

#12a


#12b


#12c


#12d


#12e


San Francisco's icon
#13


#14