The Life in My Years

Banner photo: A Chinatown shop displays horses in celebration.

My San Francisco is a series of posts that describes my own personal relationship with The City. My San Francisco pieces might be photo essays; they might be life stories, or they could be commentaries.

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Today begins the Year of the Horse. I celebrate each Lunar New Year season by visiting Chinatown in San Francisco, a place that holds many lifetime memories.

Colorful, vibrant, bustling, ever changing yet at the same time never changing Chinatown is one of my go to places for photography.

On historic old Ross Alley I found young lion dancers preparing for the festivities.

Grant Avenue is the place where tourists go to buy souvenirs that will, sooner or later, end up either in a thrift store or the landfill. One block west on Stockton is where the real action is. It’s where Chinatown is Chinatown.

Grant is where you buy a neon plastic Buddha

Stockton is where you shop for Chinese specialties.

Murals everywhere.

A relatively new mural, painted in 2023 can be found on Joice Street alley where Chinatown fades into high priced Nob Hill.

From Powell Street one can capture a classic view down Washington Street to the San Francisco Bay.

What would the Lunar New Year celebration be without . . .

and . . .

Everywhere and always in Chinatown you see reminders of the struggle for justice and equality. Sadly it’s particularly true in 2026.

“Gong Xi Fa Cai”