One of my favorite areas of Los Angeles...

As kids, mom would take my sister and I to visit regularly. Like many in the 70's she was a huge fan of Kung-fu films. Most of the films were in Chinese (sans subtitles) but it hardly mattered, you got the gist of it with all the good fighting. Also, we loved the food. There were two restaurants we'd visit most (both long gone now). First had a formal dining atmosphere to it but I remember the noodles most and lots of exploring and running around. My sister and I would use the excuse of visiting the ladies room to go explore the restaurant and hallways that led to the kitchen area. People and noises were fascinating to us. The second restaurant was a smaller one run by brothers. There were at least 3 or 4 of them, huge sumo wrestler sized guys who made the most delicious duck noodle soup in the world. Seriously, even now, as an adult I remember that soup... and I was pretty finicky about food at that age. These were the eateries of choice and after dinner she’d take us to the little Chinese novelty shops for browsing; we'd always surface with some kind of tiny treasure. Miniature Chinese tea sets, little change purses sporting the Chinatown logo... all things aimed at tourists. In a particular plaza there was a trained monkey who’d dance to the music of his partner's hand-cranked Victrola while he played the accordion. When he’d finish his performance he'd walk up to his squealing and cheering audience with a small hat to collect money… well, maybe it was just me and my sis squealing? Definitely was a wonder though. Lastly, there was Chinese New Year. Every year our mom would take us to see the parade. Remember the first time I caught sight of a dancing dragon parading down the street, fearsome and beautiful at once! Drums pounding, the dragon weaving up and down as it traversed it’s route, firecrackers popping everywhere, bells jingling... a cacophony that made your heart pound! So there you have it, those are all the nostalgic reasons behind my love of Chinatown, and on this post are some photos taken on a recent visit. It was during the day, so the nightlife isn't captured, but the day time shopping is. Many of the shops have disappeared over the years so the scene has changed. They've been replaced by a number of art galleries and a new generation of shops, but it's definitely not a bad thing. It gives us a new wave of treasures to find...







Flock Shop
943 N. Broadway, #103
Los Angeles, CA 90012



Krokeshi Dolls by Emi Motokawa











Fong's
943 Chung King Rd
Los Angeles, CA 90012







Miniatures!





Guarding the Pepin Moore gallery...



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