Stumptown, Chinatown, Old Town, Japantown (and within all that, the coolest place in town)

This is the coolest place in town. The Merchant Hotel. Built in 1880, the building belonged to the Nicolai brothers. The inner courtyard sighs with memory, and as you leave the busy street and disappear into quiet and seclusion, you sigh too. Or, at least I did. Merchant Hotel? You know, where Old Town Pizza is. I know you know where there is.

I was actually headed to the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center, which is also in the Merchant Hotel (www.oregonnikkei.org or www.discovernikkei.org), but I got distracted. Well, I only was distracted because I showed up before they opened and I had to wander (I would rather put "wonder" here but it's not technically correct) for another 10 minutes. Hanging out on the street corner in Old Town is probably not such a smart thing to be doing on a Tuesday morning. Sure, there were lots of people doing it, but since when have I followed the crowd?

Back to Old Town. Or Chinatown. Or Historic Japantown New Chinatown. I'm not sure what to call it. There are still a lot of empty (really cool) buildings. There are still lots of dim sum and some bums, but mostly I encountered new bars with goth-style signage, a couple of cool boutiques and lots of options for food. One place I want to try is Ping, in the old Hung Far Low space--but now I'm boycotting. They have taken down the Hung Far Low Sign. Please, someone, please tell me that it's just for repair or cleaning.... (I'm taking it home to my workshop, my dear. I'll fix it up there. Then I'll bring it back here...) Please tell me that this sign will not go the way of the 7-up sign or, if Randy Leonard and the U of O has their way, the Made in Oregon White Stag sign.... If I had a place for all the unwanted signs in the world---oh wait, I know of an empty plywood mill right near my house.....

So anyway, I wo/andered around the neighborhood I prefer to call Chinatown until the Center opened. Once inside, I had a change of heart. Instead of Chinatown, I am going to change my nomenclature and call it Nihonmachi (Japantown).

With the Hung Far Low travesty (hopefully not) in the front of my mind, I toured the exhibit, which was very well done. Most days I am a studier, but today I am a stroller. (Exhibits are designed with three types of visitors in mind: streakers, strollers, or studiers.) The main exhibit focuses on Japanese families before Order #9066 and where they lived during their internment and what they did after the war, or even during the war for those that served in the Armed Forces. At the end of the exhibit, there was an apology letter from George Bush, sent to every living Japanese internee, which was accompanied by a check for $20,000.

Two things to ponder today:

If I were ripped from my home, with just a suitcase of belongings, and my parents lost their business, our home and everything else they had built for our family--due to government's short sightedness--is $20,000 FORTY YEARS after the fact going to do a whole lot of good? It is going to repair my faith in the the country I was so proud to be a citizen of?

And two: almost literally overnight a bustling neighborhood of 8 blocks, with 100 business, disappeared. Is there any physical place in my memory that has disappeared or changed so much that it is no longer recognizable to me? I have to think about that some more and get back to you....

Also in the back they have some great photos of the Japanese participation in Rose Festival--one in particular of a line of darling girls in kimonos and wagasas (traditional paper umbrellas) for the Jr. Rose Festival Parade. I really wanted a postcard of this photo and I also really wanted to take a photo, but I was a good girl....

So, all in all, a good visit. I also tried to visit the Oregon Jewish Museum, but they are closed for a new exhibit installation. So, another day.

This makes the count 141. I'd better make a plan!

Some more stuff in Nihonmachi:
http://www.oldtownpizza.com/HauntedHistory2.html
http://www.shanghaitunnels.info/