On tour with: Lily Eng Destination: The International District Transportation: You can get to the International District easily by car, cab or bus. Or, you can walk about 1.25 miles from downtown. By car: From Interstate 5, take the 4th Avenue exit (Kingdome exit); From 4th Avenue, turn right onto South Jackson Street and head east. By bus: Catch a downtown bus heading south through the bus tunnel and get off at the International District station. Metro fare is $1. On foot: You can also walk from downtown south on 5th Avenue for about 15 blocks to South Jackson Street. If you listen carefully, you can almost hear the roar coming from the ceramic lions that decorate the façade of many buildings in the International District. Here, ornate streetlights brighten the sidewalks at night. And red paper from firecrackers can still be found on the sidewalks. Commonly known at the ID, the neighborhood is home to several Asian communities. While the ID is not as sprawling as San Francisco and New York's Chinatowns, it has plenty of character and characters. The Kingdome serves as its surreal backdrop. Like other Chinatowns, there is rich history at every street corner and alley. Visitors find the ID user-friendly. You don't have to walk far for a bowl of delicious noodles and you can usually find a place to eat when it's late. Feast your eyes on he sight of roast duck and chicken, which restaurant owners hang in their windows to tantalize passers-by. A good place to start a tour is King Street, the heart of old Chinatown, where pioneers established mom and pop shops, restaurants and businesses to cater to people from the homeland. Visitors should wander into the Yick Fung Co. at 705 South King Streets, where giant jars of dried lemon peels and salted prunes line the shelves. The company was an agent for the Blue Funnel line, a steam ship line that brought Chinese immigrants to America early in the century. Early arrivals slept on the second floor loft. The Wing Luke Asian Museum is just around the corner at 407 Seventh Avenue South. It is named after the late Seattle City Councilman Wing Luke, the first elected Asian American in the Pacific Northwest. The museum recounts the history of Asian Americans and their role in culture and the arts. The displays are carefully chosen and tell insightful stories. Next door is the Northwest Asian American Theater, founded by students in 1972. Down the block is the Luck Ngi Musical Club, an obscure storefront painted with musical notes and string instruments. Chinese opera singers wail about lost love, courage and devotion on Friday and Saturday nights. A spectacularly loud string orchestra accompanies the singers with panache. Pigeons are at home at Hing Hay Park's grand pavilion, which was designed and constructed in Taipei. There is also a memorial dedicated to Chinese Americans killed during World War II. "Heaven, Man and Earth" reigns at the ID. Sculpturally that is. The late Seattle artist George Tsutakawa created the splendid 14-foot bronze sculpture in 1978. It can be admired at Maynard Avenue South and South Jackson Street with all of its stark poignancy. ASIAN AMERICAN JOURNALISTS ASSOCIATION SEATTLE CHAPTER P.O. Box 9698, Seattle, WA 98109 Since 1985, Seattle's AAJA has provided scholarships for students, professional development for journalists and service to the community in the Pacific Northwest. Best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer. Hyperlinks do not constitute an endorsement of a company, organization, product or opinion, nor do they represent a guarantee the content contains accurate information.