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Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
This is the largest area of open space in Chinatown. It is known as the "Heart of Chinatown" because the neighborhood began along one of its sides and extended from there to become what is known as Chinatown today. The square bristles with activity, and here you find local residents playing cards or Chinese chess, and practicing Tai Chi. The square contains several memorials, statues, and plaques — including a bronze replica of the Goddess of Democracy statue and a marker commemorating Robert Louis Stevenson.
Portsmouth Square, formerly known as Portsmouth Plaza, and originally known as Plaza de Yerba Buena, or simply La Plaza, is a one-block plaza in Chinatown, San Francisco, California, United States. Portsmouth Square is the first park in San Francisco, predating both Washington Square (1847) and Union Square (1850). Established in the early 19th century, during the period of Mexican California, the plaza was renamed following the U.S. Conquest of California in honor of the USS Portsmouth, the American ship which captured the city. It is bounded by Kearny Street on the east, Washington Street on the north, Clay Street on the south, and Walter Lum Place on the west.
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The center was established in order to promote understanding of Chinese and Chinese American history, art, and culture in the US. They have a small gallery with changing Chinese art exhibitions.
At five stories tall, this is the largest Buddhist church in the US and is home to the largest Buddhist congregation in San Francisco. The altar was shaped to represent the ship of the Dharma (teachings of the Buddha) and its teak-paneled walls are supposed to be the sails of the ship.
Built in 1891, it was destroyed and rebuilt in 1909, originally the building housed the country's only Chinese telephone exchange. The exchange closed in 1949 and the building was subsequently restored and turned into a bank in 1960. The building is arguably the first important building in Chinatown. It is a three-tiered pagoda style building.
時代畫廊
Enjoy authentic Chinese artwork at this gallery. It has the biggest showroom (at basement level) for Chinese painting and calligraphy in China Town. They also offer classes in calligraphy for those who want to take their appreciation a step further.
Pagoda style building with a three tiered roof and decorated with ornate gold dragons and medallions on the outside.
This is the oldest Buddhist temple in the city and was named after the Norras Buddhist Temple in Tibet. It has an impressive gilded-wood altar that was imported from China.