International District

The International District of Seattle [1] has long been home to people from all over Asia, including those of Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Filipino, and Vietnamese ancestry.

All roads lead to Hing Hay Park, a small city park with a colorful pagoda-style Chinese pavilion donated by the city of Taipei. Watch out for the hundreds of pigeons that get fed here and coat the pavilion with their droppings.

The Wing Luke Asian Museum (719 South King St., 206/623-5124, www.wingluke.org [2], 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Tues.–Sun., $8 adults, $6 seniors and students, $5 ages 5–12) has artifacts from early Asian businesses, memorabilia of all types, hand-painted kites, a 35-foot Chinese dragon, plus many historic photos. The museum also displays changing exhibits of Asian art and history. Admission is free on the first Thursday and third Saturday of the month.

King Street is the heart of the district, with Chinese shops lining both sides. The International District lacks the crowded intensity of San Francisco’s Chinatown, but the streets are bordered with hole-in-the-wall restaurants, shops selling imported goods, and Asian grocers (some of the biggest are up the hill near the corner of S. Jackson Street and 12th Avenue).

You can easily find a filling lunch for $8. Kobe Terrace Park, a community garden, follows the hillside above the International District; it is capped by a concrete lantern given to Seattle [1] by its sister city of Kobe, Japan.

Chinese-American Vi Mar leads interesting Chinatown Discovery Tours (425/885-3085, www.seattlechinatowntour.com [3]) of the International District. A variety of walking tours are offered, including one with lunch at a dim sum restaurant.

Getting to the International District

The International District is easy to reach; just catch one of the free buses and ride through the tunnel to the International District [4] bus tunnel station, where outsized origami pieces decorate the walls.