Tag: Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

No Enclave — Exploring Laotian Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 10 Comments

California has by far the largest population of Laotian-Americans of any state, 58,424 as of 2010. There are large communities in both northern and southern California, with roughly 7,120 living in the Los Angeles area. There they maintain a relatively discreet profile, reflected mostly by the presence of a handful of restaurants either specializing in … Continue reading No Enclave — Exploring Laotian Los Angeles

Swinging Doors — Asian Bars of Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 4 Comments

I've heard Vietnamese and Koreans friends talk about how much Koreans and Vietnamese drink. More than once have I found myself drinking more than I should, egged on by Thai friends, Filipino family, and in one case a Japanese salaryman. No one drinks like Europeans, though, and Europeanย nations predictablyย occupy the top ten rankings ofย alcohol consumption … Continue reading Swinging Doors — Asian Bars of Los Angeles

Pan-Asian Metropolis — Southern California Night Markets

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 14 Comments

One of the great things about traveling is seeing things in other countries that it would be nice to have at home, things like arts funding, betel nut beauties, caning, compulsory voting, developed cycling infrastructure, elevenses, free state colleges, green roofs, gun control, pub culture, universal healthcare, pot cafรฉs, salted licorice, and trains that travel faster than mobility … Continue reading Pan-Asian Metropolis — Southern California Night Markets

Pan-Asian Metropolis — Asian Angeleno Musicians

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 4 Comments

A comprehensive playlist of the music of Los Angeles would have to include film scores, cool jazz, surf bands, frat rock, folk-rock, Sunset Strip psychedelia, Chicano soul, country rock, hardcore punk, Paisley Underground, hair metal, gangsta rap, and G-funk. Lists of performers and bands associated with Los Angeles invariably include plenty rock groups, soul singers, and rappers. Inevitably, most are … Continue reading Pan-Asian Metropolis — Asian Angeleno Musicians

Southland Parks — A Directory of Asian Gardens in Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 7 Comments

In Europe, there are several formalizedย traditions of botanical garden design including the Dutch, English, French, Greek, Italian, and Spanish. In Asia, there are at least long-establishedย Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Persianย schoolsย and May being Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, I'm focusing on Los Angeles's Asian-style gardens. The tradition of Japanese-American nurseriesย stretches back to the 1850s when Japanese … Continue reading Southland Parks — A Directory of Asian Gardens in Los Angeles

No Enclave — Exploring Hmong Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 7 Comments

HMONG LOS ANGELES The Hmong are a stateless people who mostly live in Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Approximately 281,000 Hmong lived in the US, as of the 2010 census, and the state with the largest population is California. While most California Hmong live in either Fresno or Sacramento Country, several thousand live in Southern California, … Continue reading No Enclave — Exploring Hmong Los Angeles

Pan-Asian Metropolis — Vegetarian Asian Restaurants in Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 1 Comment

Vegetarian buffet in Taiwan (Image: Bon Voyage Vegan) Eater LA just published a piece titled Essential Los Angeles Vegetarian Restaurants. As a vegetarian I read it with interest but was left a bit unsatisfied. Iโ€™ve eaten at seven of the seventeen restaurants on Eaterโ€™s list and have enjoyed the dining experience at each, but I do have … Continue reading Pan-Asian Metropolis — Vegetarian Asian Restaurants in Los Angeles

No Enclave — Exploring Uyghur Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 5 Comments

Uyghurs are an Asian people who mostly live in the Chinese province of Xinjiang, which most view as their homeland. There are significant diasporic populations in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, and Russia. The US also has a small population, most of whom live in either the Washington, DC or Los Angeles metropolitan areas. Unrecognized by … Continue reading No Enclave — Exploring Uyghur Los Angeles

Nobody Drives in LA — Asian-American Public Art on Public Transit

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 1 Comment

Every schoolchild hopefully learns about the 19th century Chinese immigrants who built America's rails, the largest network in the world (if embarrassingly outpaced and outdated).ย The moderately engaged Angeleno will haveย spied names likeย Nippon Sharyo,ย Kinki Sharyo, and Hyundaiย Rotem our modern (and notย embarrassing) local urban trains andย correctly surmised that the very trains are Asian immigrants of a non-human … Continue reading Nobody Drives in LA — Asian-American Public Art on Public Transit

No Enclave — Exploring Afghan Los Angeles

~ Eric Brightwell ~ 7 Comments

Afghanistan is a country in Asia which most Americans probably spent little time thinking about before the 11 September attacks in 2001. Even after the subsequent US invasion and thirteen year occupation of Afghanistan, I don't recall ever seeing a single Afghan face in any media and I'd bet that most Americans wrongly think that Afghanistan is … Continue reading No Enclave — Exploring Afghan Los Angeles