fun things to do with kids chinatown north beach san francisco california    
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San Francisco - Chinatown and North Beach

  Chinatown
Chintatown gate
    Chinatown Gate (Dragon Crested Gate) – Start exploring with your kids at the Chinatown Gate (Grant Ave. at Bush St.). The green tiled gate is topped with two dragons and fish, symbols of strength, goodness, and prosperity. The gate is flanked by two mythical Chinese lions (called "foo dogs") to scare away evil.
Chinatown
    Grant Ave. Grant Ave., the oldest street in San Francisco, is chock full of shops and restaurants. This is a great place for kids to spend their money. Stop into Chinatown Kite Shop (717 Grant Ave.) to buy a Chinese dragon kite. (Later, head down to Marina Green or Crissy Field to fly your kite.) Other shops have jade jewelry, Chinese embroidered clothes, "singing cricket" toys, zodiac animals. For fun, get a T-shirt with your child's name in Chinese characters.
Portsmouth Square
    Portsmouth Square – Portsmouth Square is more than just a wonderful playground with swings and slides for kids. Captain Montgomery raised American flag at Portsmouth Square on July 9, 1846 claiming "Yerba Buena" (San Francisco) for the United States. Portsmouth Square was also the site of California's first public school, established in 1848. Don't miss the gilded sailing ship monument to Robert Louis Stevenson, who lived and was married in San Francisco, a few years before he wrote Treasure Island.
      Chinese Cultural Center – In the lobby of the Chinese Cultural Center, they have a small display of Chinese puppets, musical instruments, changing exhibitions and an excellent art gallery and bookshop.
      Tin How Temple (125 Waverly Place) – This is one of the oldest Chinese temples in America, originally built in 1852. From street level, after you've climbed up a bunch of stairs, you'll find yourself in the small temple, beautifully ornamented with gilded altars and a forest of red paper lanterns suspended from the ceiling, inscribed with ancestor's names. At the far end of the temple is an altar with a statue of Tin Hou, the Queen of Heaven and Goddess of the Sea, wearing an elaborate headdress, flanked by two fierce guardian figures.
Fortune cookie factory
    Fortune Cookie Factory – Fortune cookies were invented in the U.S. San Francisco and Los Angeles both take credit for this popular dessert. In Chinatown, you can see how fortune cookies are made. Stop into the Mee Mee Bakery (1328 Stockton) or Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory (56 Ross Alley). The smell of fresh baked cookies is delicious – buy a large bag, and start munching. Note: The fortunes in the cookies from the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory are somewhat risqué for kids.
      Woh Hei Huen Park (on Powell, between Jackson and Pacific)This charming garden of "peace and joy" (who hei huen in Chinese) is a spot to kick back and relax with the kids. It has a traditional-style garden with bamboo, picnic tables and benches, and play structure.
    North Beach –
      Columbus Ave. Columbus Ave. is the heart of North Beach, the Italian section of San Francisco. From 1850, immigrants from Genoa, Tuscany and Sicily packed North Beach with wonderful restaurants, cafes and pastry shops. Today, North Beach is still chock a block with fun places to eat any of time of day, you can sit down at a table on the sidewalk for pasta or panini, a pizza or gelato (ice cream).
   

Washington Square Washington Square is a lovely oasis, a big chunk of green grass, ringed by large trees that are home to wild parrots (the parrots are hard to see in the trees, but you can hear them squawking.) A park since 1862, there's a really great play structure, swings and slides for little kids, and a statue of Ben Franklin in the center.

Across from the park, duck into Saint Peter and Paul Church the Italian altarpiece is awesome.

Coit Tower
    Coit Tower – No visit to San Francisco is complete without a trip to Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill. (Telegraph Hill, so named because a semaphore on the hill signaled the arrival of ships with mail and supplies.) Coit Tower was built in the 1930's – the lobby is decorated with frescoes of California daily life during the Depression. From the top of Coit Tower, you can see the pyramid-shaped Transamerica building, San Francisco Bay, downtown and Fisherman's Wharf. If the kids need a little exercise, walk up Telegraph Hill from North Beach.
kids books san francisco chinatown
     
Exploring Chinatown kids books san francisco  
Exploring Chinatown
Carol Stepanchuk, Leland Wong

Take a cultural tour of San Francisco's Chinatown. This is a wonderful background for what you'll see – herb shops with unique aromas, stationery stores and calligraphy, the Tin How temple, art galleries with brush paintings, New Year's parades, festivals and dragon lore. (Picture book)

 

     
Celebrating Chinese New Year
Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith, Lawrence Migdale

Fun photo story of a San Francisco family as they celebrate Chinese New Year – sweep away the bad luck, buy flowers (symbols of rebirth), put oranges on the family altar, cook special dishes and enjoy a New Year's feast. (Picture book)

 

 
childrens books chinatown san francisco Celebrating Chinese New Year
     
Celebrating Chinese New Year: An Activity Book  

Ten different activities to do for Chinese New Year – make your own lollipop banger (to scare away the evil spirits), lucky money envelope, or paper lantern, color animals of the zodiac, and more. (Activity book)

 

     

"Little dishes on carts, little dishes on tables," dim sum is fun for everyone in the family – Ma-Ma likes pork buns, Ba-Ba eats fried shrimp, Mei-Mei picks sweet tofu. A charming story, plus a picture glossary of dim sum dishes. (Picture book)

 

 
Dim Sum for Everyone! childrens books chinatown san francisco
     
kids books chinatown san francisco The Magic Brush  
The Magic Brush
Kat Yeh, Huy Voun Lee

Jasmine learns Chinese calligraphy from her grandfather. Together they create a magical world of rivers and mountains, flying fish, friendly monkeys, and mythical dragons. Fabulous cut-paper collages! (Picture book)

 

     
The Dragon's Child
Laurence Yep, Dr. Kathleen S. Yep

Based on a true story, a young boy and his father come to San Francisco, leaving the rest of his family in China. At Angel Island, the boy must prove his ancestry, or be sent back to China. A super story of the immigrant experience. (Chapter book)

 

 
The Dragon's Child - kids books chinatown san francisco
     
childrens books chinatown san francisco The New Year Dragon Dilemma
 

In this Chinatown mystery adventure, a priceless ruby is stolen from Miss Chinatown during the New Year's parade. Can three kids find the real thief, and what's the secret of Gum Lung? (Easy reader)

 

(More children's books on other San Francisco pages)
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