Life in San Francisco, Chinatown, California, stories, pictures, travel experiences ..: "I pondered the day's journey as I sat in the dark talking with strangers. I realized then that tourists who seek the enchantment of Chinatown should do as I had done - wander about without the restrictions of an organized walking tour, and certainly without the confusion of my self-inflicted haphazard path. Much of the day's enjoyment had come from the excitement of blazing my own trail through a new and fascinating land.

Just then, a man dressed in a business suit at the other end of the bar briefly joined in our conversation. He said that the old market area moved from Grant Avenue to Stockton Street after the tourists moved in. 'It used to be more interesting in the old days,' he said in a tone of somber reminiscence. I imagine if Lewis and Clark were alive today, they would whole-heartedly share that sentiment."