Food, History, and Resistance: A Self-Guided Audio Tour

5.0
(10 reviews)

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50 minutes to 1 hour (approximately)
Offered in: English

Explore San Francisco's historic Japantown at your own pace on this self-guided audio tour. Japanese-American local Kristin Eriko Posner will guide you through the neighborhood, sharing little-known stories on how history shaped the food, culture, and landscape of the oldest Japantown in the U.S. This geo-tagged audio tour is best between 10:30am - 3:30pm on Wednesday-Saturdays, when all of the businesses on the tour are open. However, it can be taken at any time, on any day. Most stops are open until 6pm.

The tour is ready whenever you are and the audio plays automatically at exactly the right time and place using your smartphone's GPS and the VoiceMap mobile app, which also works offline.

What's Included

VoiceMap Application
Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata
Lifetime access to 'Food, History and Resistance in Japantown' tour
Smartphone
Transportation
Food/drinks
Tickets or entrance fees to any museums or other attractions en route

Meeting and pickup

Meeting point

Under the red torii gate at Sutter and Buchanan Streets. Before arrival, install the VoiceMap app and use the code provided on your ticket. This is a self-guided audio tour that you can start, pause, or restart any time and complete at your own pace. Directions to the starting point are in the app.

End point

Itinerary

Duration: 50 minutes to 1 hour (approximately)
  • (Pass by)

    While there are many great restaurants, there’s just so much more to Japantown than ramen and sushi. There are stories here that so many don’t know - stories you might never know unless you were part of the community.

    Admission ticket free
  • (Pass by)

    Benkyodo is one of only three traditional Japanese manju makers remaining in the US. The others are in each of the other two remaining Japantowns in Los Angeles and San Jose. Manju is a traditional Japanese confection, traditionally filled with sweet bean paste and wrapped with mochi, a glutinous rice that is pounded down into a sticky, gooey, delicious mass.

    Admission ticket free
  • (Pass by)

    Bop City at 1712 Fillmore Street became the place to play after hours. Anyone who was anyone in jazz played here: John Coltrane, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis and Duke Ellington to name a few. In the 1940’s San Francisco’s black community grew immensely and Fillmore Street was dubbed the Harlem of the West.

    Admission ticket free

Additional info

  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Service animals allowed
  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Supplied by VoiceMap Audio Tours

Tags

Audio Guides
Cultural Tours
Historical Tours
Walking Tours
City Tours
Small Group
Short term availability

Cancellation Policy

All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.

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Rating

5.0 Based on 10 10 reviews
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