While I was in San Francisco last weekend, my step-mother and I took a lovely stroll through the streets of Chinatown.  Our primary mission was steamed pork buns and a new purse, but we ended up roaming around for over three hours – simply breathing in the city and taking in the beautiful Autumn afternoon.

Our first stop was to check out the architecture at the Wells Fargo at Post & Montgomery; the inside of the bank has great big columns, tall ceilings and sweeping archways – but my favorite part was the ceiling outside of the bank.

Next, we ventured off into the heart of Chinatown.  Los Angeles doesn’t exactly get the same seasonal shift as we do up in San Francisco, so it was lovely to see some color, both hanging from buildings as well as in the trees, against the grey sky that morning.

Found this little creature outside of an apartment complex and it looked so menacing and comical at the same time –

The one thing that struck me was how nostalgic Chinatown made me for Shanghai; especially stumbling across scenes like below where older women laughing and conversing while tending to their markets.

I’m a sucker for fabulous street art, so it’s only logical that I’d accidentally stumble across the remnants of a Banksy.  I was actually admiring the fantastic dragon mural when a friend pointed out that it wrapped around another artists piece. There are apparently 5 more Banksy’s in the city – next time I venture back I’m making it a goal to visit all of them!

 By midday, the sun had scattered the clouds away and it had turned into a lovely 70° afternoon; perfect temperature for our leisurely walk.

Last but certainly not least, I found this mural when we were finally on our way out…