Culture is defined in many ways. Food, tradition, clothes, heritage, language.. You name it. We all have a safe place where we can truly embrace the culture we’ve grown up in. For me, SF Chinatown has a sweet place in my heart. as an asian american, seeing the culture of my ancestors in such a welcoming place since young has continually motivated me to explore this culture that was once foreign to me. This entailed learning about beautiful art, language, and most of all, people. The grandmas on the street who hobble up and down the steep streets of San Francisco, the tempting aroma of the Chinese bakeries and “heibi” (dried Chinese shrimp) displayed as we walk to our next destination, shows that Chinatown is not just a place for rice hats and fortune cookies. As we know, culture is not what just we see on the surface. it’s a way for communities of different backgrounds to discover their identities in this busy society.

Never be ashamed of your culture. No matter where you are from or your background, there is a whole different world that you will never get to know if you run away from it.