Today was the celebration of the Lunar New Year in Tacoma’s Lincoln District and I took the chance to snap some photos of the new signage that reflects the revitalization of the district. An article on the revitalization project can be found here. I love this district and am really looking forward to how the revitalization project proceeds. It was also a joy to see how some of the more recent immigrants are positively shaping the country.
Thea Park hosted dragon boat races today and dear husband and I managed to see the very end of it. Not the racing part, but there was still a group receiving awards and a booth or two. I wandered on to the dock to see the new still dragon boats, their dragon heads being safely stowed.
Hing Hay Park at 423 Maynard Ave S. is a vital part of Seattle’s International District. The name translates to “Park for Pleasurable Gatherings”. The pagoda, or Grand Pavilion, was constructed in Taipei, Taiwan in 1974. The mural facing the park shows an elaborate dragon. When I visited there was a group of men playing chess on the over-sized chess board and others were playing ping pong.
Dear daughter wanted to go to Seattle’s International District for her birthday this weekend and we wandered over to the International Children’s Park to have a time playing on the dragon, playing the drums and spinning. The park is located at 700 South Lane Street and was established n 1981. The dragon, which I climbed on and successfully got off of, was created by Gerard Tsutakawa. His father was also a sculptor and he design The Lily Statue in Lakewood.
I was delighted to see that the cherry trees in the park had begun to blossom!
The Hope Heights mural at 6323 McKinley Avenue is glorious! It has vibrant colors and plethora of images including skulls, fish, a raven and a dragon. The combined cultures are illustrated together around a ginormous tree. The mural had an art team of Joni Joachims and artists Yvette Simone, Chelsea O’Sullivan, Kate Cendejas, Brian Hutcheson, and Janice Lee Warren. To learn more, visit this blog http://tacomaarts.wordpress.com/2012/09/06/murals-project-update-hope-heights-mural-is-complete/
Although the building’s address is on McKinley, the mural fronts on 63rd. The brick building was constructed in 1925 and was owner occupied by the Grote Pharmacy, which included a U.S. Postal Substation. More recently it was occupied by A. A. Wedding Supplies, but it is now vacant (at least the lower level) and available for rent.
Each and every holiday this wonderful hedge dragon lights up to share the joy! It is across the street from the Moore Branch of the Tacoma Public Library (215 S 56th Ave Tacoma, WA 98408). I truly admire folks that go all out for the holidays! This holiday ledge dragon even has a Rudolph red nose! 🙂
