It’s a vibrant community masquerading as a tourist trap.

In San Francisco’s Chinatown, reputedly the largest Chinese settlement outside China, 30,000 people are squeezed into 24 blocks, where they live, work, play — and graciously welcome the curious.

The colorful pagoda-like decorations that adorn the front
gate and enliven the central Grant Avenue lend the area an exotic air, and serve the purpose for which they were added in the 1920s — tempting shoppers and diners to visit what is also a working community. PHOTO: GATE.JPG Street signs are in Chinese and English, and colorful decorations spill down steep hills. Dim sum is $1.50 and a CD is $6.00 — and my colleague’s complicated watch, which Walmart employees refused to touch, was painstakingly repaired by an elderly man who spoke no English but went about his craft with skill and honesty.

The main influx of Chinese to the area occurred in the 19th century, when they came to build the transcontinental railroad. When that work was finished in 1869, there were over 20,000 Chinese in the area, the vast majority of them men. Most of them brought over their wives later, then settled down to make a life in the New World.

Interestingly, while the main Chinese dialect is Mandarin, which has more speakers than any other language worldwide, people here predominantly speak Cantonese, a dialect related to Mandarin as English is related to German. These people hail from the south of China, near Hong Kong; Mandarin-speakers didn’t start coming to the U.S. until the 1960s.

All of San Francisco was marked by the 1906 earthquake, and Chinatown is no exception. Fire raged for three days, and most of the area was destroyed. With their signature industry, however, the inhabitants were quick to rebuild. One can get a feel for the post-1906 look by glancing down Commercial Street, which was not adorned to attract tourists.

Most of the businesses, shops and restaurants cluster on Grant Avenue, but the entire area is a haven for bargain-hunters. Even more, it is a glimpse on a culture that may be receding. The Chinatown residents are aging. The average age is 70, and one sees many who are obviously elderly.

The younger generation, such as my guide, Francis Chiu of All About Chinatown Tours, tired of the crowded, expensive and (it must be confessed) dingy quarters and moved out. However, he told us, his elderly relatives can walk everywhere and socialize in Portsmouth Square, which is “their living room.” Here in this cement-floored enclave, the men play cards and Chinese chess, and the women gossip and babysit grandchildren, in segregated groups. At 6 a.m., they come out to do Ti Chi exercises.

The square has interest for tourists as well, as it features a statue of Robert Louis Stevenson, who used to write novels there, and a memorial to the 1989 uprising in China’s Tienamen Square that resulted in a massacre that shocked the world.

This glimpse of culture supported by tourism is reinforced by a visit to a crowded, smelly fish market, where live frogs, quail, ducks and chickens await their end in the cooking pot. “Chinese love fresh food,” Chiu told us. And indeed, many of the shoppers are among the half-million Chinese in the Bay area, who drive in weekly to do their shopping at authentic markets and bargain prices. Ninety-nine percent of the goods sold in Chinatown originated in China.

Another spot where East met West was St. Mary’s square. Old St. Mary’s Cathedral was built with Chinese labor, and now many worship there. In the square, dominated by the Bank of America building, which is the second-highest building in San Francisco, stands a statue dedicated to Sun Yat Sen, the revolutionary often referred to as the father of modern China.

Most fascinating to me was a serendipitous glimpse I got while ascending the stairs of a narrow building to view the Tin Hau temple (places of worship are always on the top floor, to be closer to Heaven). A rehearsal for an opera was underway, with players and singers concentrating on producing sounds most foreign to my classical ear.

At the temple, incense is lit to prepare the gods to attend, then a prayer is sent up. Prayer sticks give answers to heartfelt questions — some were in use even as our tour group listened to the description of the activity.

Perhaps the most charming and instructive visit I paid was one to a fortune-cookie shop. It was fascinating to watch the circular cookies drop hot from the mold into skillful hands that popped in a fortune and bent them into the characteristic shape before they dried. The sweet, crunchy flawed ones are handed out free to customers, who can also have their own fortunes inserted. Fashioning the delicacies were two young women fresh from China, who were folded into the community and given employment.

This close-knit feeling that does not seem resentful of tourists made this destination particularly attractive.

Happy Traveling!

Captions: 1. The ornate front gate was constructed to attract tourists. 2. Narrow back alleys provide a behind-the-scenes look at the “real” Chinatown. 3. In Portsmouth Square, men gather to play Chinese chess. 4. People come from all over to purchase food prepared in authentic Chinese fashion. 5. A fortune-cookie shop reveals the craft that goes into preparing these sweet treats.