First Impressions of San Francisco (2 of 3)
Photos taken by a repatriating expat the first month back (post 2 of 3)
It’s been one year since I moved to San Francisco from Shanghai, China. I looked back at the photos I took during my first month in the USA to see what impressions I had of the city on the bay. Here’s what caught my eye when I first explored my new home.
View the other parts:
Part 2: Many Cultures, One City
Moving back to the USA was a culture shock. Fortunately, Chinese culture is very present in San Francisco, along side many other cultures.
In the heart of the Mission District is the Mission Dolores church, the oldest building in San Francisco (built in 1776). It was one of 21 missionary sites that the Spanish colonists established along the North American west coast. It’s a beautiful example of the Mission style architecture but is also central to the violent history of Spanish colonization in the Bay Area.
Another beautiful building in the Mission District. I just learned that it’s currently a hotel. It’s also a parking lot, if you drive through the entrance of the old cinema (built in 1928). At least they preserved the gorgeous facade.
North of the Mission District sits the city government at Civic Center. City Hall, in this picture, calls to mind the federal buildings of Washington DC. In San Francisco, the seat of the city’s power is surrounded by the arts: the opera house, museums, and the main branch of the public library.
In addition to the Mission style, San Francisco is famous for elaborate Victorian houses with turrets, towers, lots of windows and decorative embellishments.
San Francisco also has a vibrant living history of murals on buildings, especially in the Mission District. This colorful piece is the entrance of Cesar Chavez Elementary School.
The “muralismo” tradition came to San Francisco from Mexico in the early 1900s. Mexican influence is still present in much of the street art and murals around the Mission District today. Learn more about the murals in a book written by a friend of mine: Street Art San Francisco.
The mural tradition can be seen all over the Bay Area, depicting the values and cultures that dominate each neighborhood. This building has two separate murals honoring the intersection of Chinatown to the left and North Beach, the Italian neighborhood, to the right.
Chinatown has a lot of great murals showing both traditional and modern Chinese culture. I like how this one combines Chinese and American symbols, showing the Statue of Liberty as Guanyin and the Bald Eagle as a phoenix.
It’s also interesting to see famous sites from China replicated in Chinatown. I especially like how this mural combines 2-D paintings with 3-D statues of the Terracotta Warriors from Xi’an.
Another sight I found comforting after leaving China was laundry hanging on balconies (fire escapes). Unfortunately, many places have laws banning people from hanging clothing outside, remnants of anti-Chinese sentiment from the late 1800s.
Chinatown has its own unique culture as well. Did you know that fortune cookies are actually American? They were popularized in Chinese restaurants in America in the early 1900s and don’t exist in China. This is the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory in the heart of Chinatown.
I like the sentiment on this tip jar. Although tipping was a part of American culture that was an unwelcome shock to return to.
I found many parts of American culture unwelcoming after living abroad, even if they were trying to be humorous.
The cactus garden outside this house was also unwelcoming in a sense, but so quintessentially Californian. Having grown up on the East Coast, I’m still surprised to see cacti on the street.
I’m also surprised by palm trees. So many things to adjust to on the West Coast.
> Continue reading Part 3: Remembering to Be American
< Go back to Part 1: Iconic City on the Bay