San Francisco Ghosts

14. Hang Ah Alley

San Francisco, CA

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The next stop on our tour brings us deeper into Chinatown. Many people stay on the main street in Chinatown; however, oftentimes it is better to get off the main road. The alleyways in Chinatown were named by the Chinese immigrants. The immigrants chose the names, as was part of the tradition, starting in the mid nineteenth century. The Hang Ah alley is home to the oldest dim sum house in all of San Francisco. Originally called Pagoda Alley, the name of the street was changed to Hang Ah or "Fragrant" when a German chemist opened a perfume shop. The perfume shop filled the alleyway with the scent of the lotus flower, and it is said that many women wore the perfume while they entertained male visitors in the brothels nearby. Today, the perfume shop no longer resides in the alleyway, and all the brothels are shut up. Much of Chinatown is filled with the smell of restaurants, egg rolls and ancient Chinese delicacies, but sometimes while walking through the alleyway the lotus flowers will fill the air, bringing back a time from before Chinatown was a tourist attraction.