Culture California

Sunset, May, 2004

In California, currents converge and cut new streams. Asian Pacific sensibilities permeate California's landscape from one end to the other, in its major cities--San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Diego--its rural outposts, and even the Silicon Valley.

CALIFORNIA'S STATE PARKS

The traditions of Californians of Asian and Pacific Islander descent are remembered and shared throughout California State Parks' monuments, historic parks, museums and visitors centers. The centerpiece of the China Camp State Historic Park is China Camp, the oldest (1880s) and last Chinese fishing village on San Francisco Bay. A small cluster of preserved buildings remains from the Chinese shrimp-fishing village. Tour historic structures and an interpretive display to get a feeling for life in the 20 to 30 fishing villages that once flourished in the San Francisco Bay Area.

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Also located in San Francisco Bay, Angel Island State Park's Immigration Station was the first stop for immigrants crossing the Pacific. Between 1910 and 1940, hundreds of thousands of immigrants from China, India, Japan and Korea were stationed, quarantined, questioned and processed at this historical site. Echoes of their journeys and trials are recorded on the walls.

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Built in 1863 to serve a community of 10,000 Chinese, the Oroville Chinese Temple and Garden in Oroville is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and as a California Historical Landmark. A self-guiding tour includes three chapels for the religions of Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism. See extensive tapestries, costumes and treasured puppets of the Chinese Opera Theatre. Enjoy tea in the garden in May.

The oldest continuously used Chinese temple in California, the 1875 Weaverville Joss House State Historic Park offers a fascinating glimpse into Chinese traditions and the role the Chinese played in settling the West. For some, this Taoist temple is still a place of worship. Explore its richly furnished interior, which features images of deities and traditional "spirit screens."

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SAN JOSE

San Jose is home to over 25 major Asian communities, including one of the largest Vietnamese communities outside of Vietnam, and one of three remaining original Japantowns in the U.S. Here, you'll find nightclubs, festivals and museums. The Japanese American Museum offers walking tours of the district.

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HANFORD

An herb shop, a Chinese school and a gambling house were once part of Hanford's tiny bustling community. Now, the historic Taoist Temple in Hanford includes a well-preserved temple, museum and gift shop. At Hanford's Ruth and Sherman Lee Institute for Japanese Art, view Japanese paintings, sculpture and decorative arts.

This guide was developed by the California Cultural Tourism Coalition, which consists of the California Travel & Tourism Commission; the California Arts Council; California State Parks; the Convention & Visitors Bureaus of San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and Sacramento; the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission; City of San Diego Commission for Arts & Culture; San Francisco Grants for the Arts; and the Los Angeles County Arts Commission. Produced by Cooperative Publishing & Marketing: Graphic Designer, Maximillian Mark Medina; Writer, Angeline Vogl.