Summer Trips for 2021

By Leonard Chan (except where noted)

Summer is here and places are beginning to open up and resume normal operations. So how about Asian and Pacific Islander American museums and places of interest?

This article marks the return of our summer travel series. Each June, prior to our hiatus (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 - apologies, there are a lot of broken link in these articles; we hope to fix them in the near future), our newsletter would feature travel destination with a connection to Asian and Pacific Islander Americans. Last year, on the return of our newsletter, we didn’t have a travel article because of the COVID-19 pandemic closures. Now that pandemic restrictions are being lifted, we’ll give you a quick guide to places that may be opening up soon.

Asian Art Museum

Open Th: 1–8pm & F–M: 10am–5pm

I’ve rarely been to the Asian Art Museum since they moved from Golden Gate Park, 20 years ago, to their current location in the Civic Center area of San Francisco. I’ve only been there for one event, and to look at their gift and bookshop, but I haven’t truly checked out their exhibits for quite some time.

Contrary to what I remember, the Asian Art Museum is not just a place for art from Asia – it also includes works by Asian American artist too.

Currently, they have a free exhibit on the sidewalk in front of the museum by Filipinx American artist Jenifer K Wofford entitled “Pattern Recognition: KAY SEKIMACHI! CHIURA OBATA! JADE SNOW WONG! RUTH ASAWA!: We are America, Know Our Names.” It a mural highlighting local Asian American artists to show how AAPIs are a part of the fabric of the American experience. The exhibit is part of Wofford and the museum’s effort to end AAPI hate through art.

Along with the sidewalk exhibit they currently have an exhibit by Bay Area artist Zheng Chongbin entitled “I look for the Sky” that uses light and transparencies in interesting ways. Check out the neat time-lapse video of one of the pieces being assembled in the lobby of the museum.

They have a bunch of other current and planned exhibits, including one called “teamLab: Continuity” which is animated, interactive, and looks visually spectacular.

I also found on their website a number of virtual exhibits and videos, much of it of their permanent collection. Most of the virtual exhibits are free except the live streamed tours. This is well worth checking out, especially for those of you that can’t make your way to the museum.

Google map (200 Larkin St, San Francisco, CA 94102)

Little Tokyo in Los Angeles

By Pia Ceres

This summer, I've finally returned to one of my favorite neighborhoods: Little Tokyo in Los Angeles. Now that more of LA is vaccinated, it's a fantastic time to support this historic area and show some love to the small businesses that have persevered during the pandemic.

At the heart of the neighborhood is the Japanese American National Museum (JANM), which is now open by reservation. Starting on July 9, JANM will have an exhibit titled “A Life in Pieces: The Diary and Letters of Stanley Hayami.” Stanley’s diary of his World War II experience of incarceration at Heart Mountain War Relocation Center and his letters from military service are sure to be enlightening and poignant. JANM also has some live streamed events and videos that can be viewed from their website – check them out here.

After you've visited the museum, peruse the shops or grab a bite to eat anywhere around 1st St. I have a soft spot for the hand-pulled udon at Marugame Monzo—before Covid, my high school best friend and I would drive all the way from Orange County just to eat cold zaru udon together.

For more of a date night vibe, Men Oh Ramen has transformed its parking lot into a beautiful outdoor dining area, decked out with glowing string lights.

Don't forget to bring back mochi from Fugetsu-Do, a family-run shop that has been making sweets in the neighborhood since 1903. (I promise, it's worth the line!)

Google map (JANM: 100 N Central Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012)

El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park

Open Th-Su: 11am-4pm

In our June 2008 newsletter article, I mentioned the burial site for Antonio Miranda Rodriguez - the first named Filipino in what is now the continental United States (he is also listed as one of the founders of Los Angeles, but apparently ended up in Santa Barbara instead). I mentioned that he was at the El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park.

When I was passing through Santa Barbara a number of years ago, I made the mistake of not referring to my article and instead went to the Mission Santa Barbara. They are two different places. Antonio Miranda Rodriguez is buried at the chapel located at the presidio in downtown Santa Barbara.

In my recent research of El Presidio de Santa Barbara (check out Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation), I discovered another reason to make this visit. The site now includes an exhibit called Nihonmachi Revisited: Santa Barbara's Japanese American Community in Transition, 1900-1940. Apparently, Santa Barbara had a thriving Japanese community that was severely impacted by the forced removal of the Japanese population during World War II.

Across from the presidio is a converted historic Chinese restaurant (Jimmy’s Oriental Garden) that now serves as a museum and eatery (Lovejoy’s Pickle Room – the rueben egg rolls look interesting :). Jimmy’s Oriental Garden was one of the last surviving Chinese businesses in Santa Barbara’s Chinatown and the exhibit wall descriptions help to tell the story of the Chinese community that once existed there.

So if you’re in the area (passing through or live nearby) check these sites out. It’s further evidence of Asians being a part of the American experience in many communities for a long time.

If you can’t get there, check out their virtual tour.

Google map (123 E Canon Perdido St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101)

Kepaniwai Park and Heritage Gardens

Open daily: 7am-5:30pm

One of the memorable sites from my trip to Maui a number of years ago was a visit to the Kepaniwai Park and Heritage Gardens.

The park is located in the Iao Valley which is in the interior of an extinct volcano. One of the distinguishing features of the valley is the Iao Needle – a volcanic outcrop that rises 1200 ft above the valley floor.

The valley has mythological and historic significance, and was the site of royal burial grounds and the bloody 1790 Battle of Kepaniwai. The Maui army was defeated by Kamehameha I in his campaign to unify the Hawaiian Islands.

In 1952, five heritage gardens were created to commemorate, through garden design elements and structures, the contributions of different groups of people that have lived in Hawaii, including Hawaiians, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, and Filipinos. Over time, more design elements have been added to the gardens including something for people from New England that came in whaling ships and Koreans.

The gardens are a nice peaceful setting that are befitting of a sacred space.

Note: travelers from outside of Hawaii and that were not fully vaccinated in Hawaii are currently required to get tested prior to their trip to Hawaii. Otherwise they are to be quarantined for 10 days upon arrival. This restriction is to be lifted on July 8th. Follow the COVID-19 guidelines posted on the Safe Travels Hawaiʻi website for more information.

Google map (870 Iao Valley Rd, Wailuku, HI 96793)

National Japanese American Historical Society (NJAHS)

Opening Soon

Rosalyn Tonai, executive director of NJAHS, informs us that their MIS Historic Learning Center in the Presidio of San Francisco will be opening up soon. Reservations will be required. Their Japantown Peace Gallery on Post Street may take a little longer to open up as they have been taking the opportunity to do some renovations.

People interested in visiting should check with their website for more information.

Note that there are plenty of interesting things that you can peruse on their website, including over 1,000 images of historical artifacts, documents, photographs, architectural drawings and engineering plans, and videos and audio oral histories.

Google map (1684 Post St, San Francisco, CA 94115 and 640 Mason St., San Francisco, CA 94129)

Chinese Historical Society of America

Opening Soon

Like NJAHS, CHSA has taken the opportunity to renovate their museum.

Please check their website for opening information.

They have some virtual content on their website and are planning and working on some interesting projects including a Bruce Lee exhibit titled “We Are Bruce Lee: Under the Sky, One Family” that will be opened later this year.

Google map (965 Clay St, San Francisco, CA 94108)

Notes for the following:

Open days and hours are subject to change, especially as many of these places are in the process of reopening and may be doing it gradually. Please check their websites’ for up-to-date information.

One of the consequences of the pandemic is that many of these organizations have had more time to created new content for their websites. It’s well worth checking out their sites.

Angel Island Immigration Station (Angel Island, CA)

Open for self-guided tours; virtual exhibits available

Website (https://www.aiisf.org/index.php/visit)

Asian American Comparative Collection (AACC: U of Idaho, Moscow, ID)

Virtual content, including a page of links to sites and museums in the Pacific North West

Website (https://webpages.uidaho.edu/aacc/)

Bishop Museum (Honolulu, HI)

Open daily: 9am-5pm

Website (https://www.bishopmuseum.org/)

The Chinese American Museum (Los Angeles, CA)

Currently closed with online exhibits

Website (https://camla.org/)

Chinese American Museum of Northern California (Marysville, CA)

Open first Sat. of each month: Noon-4pm; virtual content

Website (https://chineseamericanmuseum.com/)

Filipino American National Historical Society Museum (Stockton, CA)

Open by appointment Sa-Su: 11am-4pm

Website (http://www.fanhsmuseum.com/)

Japanese American Museum of San Jose

Open Weekends: Noon-4pm

Website (https://www.jamsj.org/)

Korean American National Museum (Los Angeles, CA)

Open in 2022 – some virtual content with preview of the new museum can be found on their site

Website (https://www.kanmuseum.org/)

Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA New York, NY)

Opening Soon

Website (https://www.mocanyc.org/)

National Indo-American Museum (Chicago, IL)

Virtual exhibits and events

Website (https://www.niam.org/)

National Park Service

Virtual content; there’s lots of information on Asian and Pacific Islander American places of interest on their dedicated page. If there’s only one site that you have time to explore, this is the one.

Website (https://www.nps.gov/subjects/aapiheritage/places.htm)

Oroville Chinese Temple and Museum (Oroville, CA)

Open W and F: 10am-2pm; virtual content

Website (City website)

San Diego Chinese Historical Museum

Currently closed with online exhibits

Website (https://sdchm.org/)

San Mateo County History Museum (Redwood City, CA)

Open Tu-Su: 10am-4pm

For those of you that live near Redwood City, be sure to check this museum out. Here’s another example of a local general history museum that has an informative exhibit about how Asian Americans have played an important role in the history of the community.

Website (https://historysmc.org/)

Seattle Asian Art Museum (Seattle, WA)

Open F-Su: 10an-5pm

Website (https://www.seattleartmuseum.org/visit/seattle-asian-art-museum)

Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (APAC)

Virtual content

Website (https://smithsonianapa.org/)

Virtual Asian American Art Museum (VAAAM)

Virtual content

Website (https://vaaam.tome.press/)

Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience (Seattle, WA)

Open F-Su 10am-5pm

Website (https://wingluke.org/)