Frommer's San Francisco 2012 - Matthew Poole [150]
The goal of this organization is not only to “study, record, acquire, and preserve all suitable artifacts and such cultural items as manuscripts, books, and works of art . . . which have a bearing on the history of the Chinese living in the United States of America,” but also to “promote the contributions that Chinese Americans living in this country have made to the United States of America.” It’s an admirable and much-needed effort, considering what little recognition and appreciation the Chinese have received throughout American history.
The museum is open Tuesday through Friday from noon to 5pm and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4pm. Admission is $3 for adults, $2 for college students with ID and seniors, and $1 for kids 6 to 17.
Retrace your steps, heading east on Clay Street back toward Grant Avenue. Turn left onto:
18 Waverly Place
Also known as “the Street of Painted Balconies,” Waverly Place is probably Chinatown’s most popular side street or alleyway because of its painted balconies and colorful architectural details—a sort of Chinese-style New Orleans street. And though you can admire the architecture only from the ground, because most of the buildings are private family associations or temples, with a recent beautification and renovation by the city it’s definitely worth checking out.
One temple you can visit (but make sure it’s open before you climb the long, narrow stairway) is the Tin How Temple, at 125 Waverly Place. Accessible via the stairway three floors up, this incense-laden sanctuary, decorated in traditional black, red, and gold lacquered wood, is a house of worship for Chinese Buddhists, who come here to pray, meditate, and send offerings to their ancestors and to Tin How, the Queen of the Heavens and Goddess of the Seven Seas. There are no scheduled services, but you are welcome to visit. Just remember to quietly respect those who are here to pray and try to be as unobtrusive as possible. It is customary to give a donation (put it in one of those little red envelopes) or buy a bundle of incense during your visit.
Once you’ve finished exploring Waverly Place, walk east on Clay Street, past Grant Avenue, and continue until you come upon the block-wide urban playground that is also the most important site in San Francisco’s history.
19 Portsmouth Square
This very spot was the center of the region’s first township, which was called Yerba Buena before it was renamed San Francisco in 1847. Around 1846, before any semblance of a city had taken shape, this plaza lay at the foot of the bay’s eastern shoreline. There were fewer than 50 non–Native American residents in the settlement, there were no substantial buildings to speak of, and the few boats that pulled into the cove did so less than a block from where you’re standing.
In 1846, when California was claimed as a U.S. territory, the marines who landed here named the square after their ship, the USS Portsmouth. (Today a bronze plaque marks the spot where they raised the U.S. flag.)
Yerba Buena remained a modest township until the gold rush of 1849 when, over the next 2 years, the population grew from under 1,000 to over 19,000, as gold seekers from around the world made their way here.
When the square became too crowded, long wharves were constructed to support new buildings above the bay. Eventually, the entire area became landfill. That was almost 150 years ago, but today the square still serves as an important meeting place for neighborhood Chinese—a sort of communal outdoor living room.
Throughout the day, the square is heavily trafficked by children and—in large part—by elderly men, who gamble over Chinese cards and play chess. If you arrive early in the morning, you might come across people practicing tai chi.
It is said that Robert Louis Stevenson used to love to sit on a bench here and watch life go by. (At the northeast corner of the square, you’ll find a monument to his memory, consisting of a model of the Hispaniola, the ship in Stevenson’s novel Treasure Island, and an excerpt from his “Christmas Sermon.