My family and I enjoy visiting Chinatown in Boston. There are local markets where you can select fresh (live) seafood for dinner in the aquarium or peruse a large selection of teas and herbal medicine. Shopping at the markets are fun and a great experience with children. Two of our favorite Asian markets are Ming's Supermarket and the C-Market under the garage off Beach Street.

Chinatown is one of the many great places to explore in Boston. You can get there by public transportation: The trolley (aka "T"), bus or by car. Most of the shop keepers there speak the cantonese and/or taosinese Chinese dialetcts and some broken english. Boston's China Town has historically had a seedy side to it. For a while it bordered on "The Combat Zone", a section of town known to be a haven for drugs and prostitution. However, today's Chinatown has been cleaned up and is a safe place for tourists to explore during the day and evening.

The best time to visit Chinatown is on the weekend about 10 AM. The mornings are easiest to find parking. The police enjoy ticketing unsuspecting visitors all over Boston. They are very clever and have no qualms stalking and ticketing your car, then they bicycle out of there before you can blink an eye and there laying on your windshield is the flash of orange which pops up in everyone's nightmare. You may even see the infamous boot on a car or two downtown. A series of unpaid parking tickets can lead to a very expensive boot for your car. Avoid it at all costs! If in doubt about the parking spot, just goto a garage, the garage off Beach Street is convienent. There is a flat day rate during the weekend and some stores and restaurants will give you a voucher. Below the parking garage is one of our favorite Restaurants, the Hei La Moon Restaurant at 88 Beach Street. Also located below the garage is the C-Market Asian supermarket. It is very convenient and the prices are reasonable.

When you walk into a chinese market, it's similar to stepping into the twilight zone. It's like nothing you have ever experienced or seen. There are so many different things to see and smell and experience. You can step up to the seafood counter and select your own live fish for dinner from the many fish swimming in the tank.  Buy a couple of pounds of fresh roast pork.  It can be purchased fresh, you can see it hangining in the window in pig form, next to the roast duck and roast chicken.  Medicinal herbs, fresh tea leaves and many other ethnic foods will surround you. Take a trip on the wild side and you'll find yourself exploring another realm.

Fresh pastries at the bakeries start coming out of the oven in the early morning hours and continue till late morning. You can smell them all through town. It gets your mouth watering. The pastries prices start at $0.50 and can go as high as a few dollars. You can get a slice of China thru these pastries. Please try the coconut buns (pronounced guy-me-bow) and even the sweet pork filled buns (pronounced char-su-bow). You won't regret it. Hopefully?! The pastries are not as sweet as most american ones are. There is less use of sugar and much more flavors which will arouse your taste buds in different ways. My favorite pastry shop is Eldo's (on Harrison Ave) but there are many other bakeries to also choose from. You should always have cash available, most bakeries only accept cash. If you get to some of the bakeries just before 6pm you can often get two for price of one. But be forwarned, the end of the day rush for these bargains can get a little out of hand.

Dim Sum in Chinatown is an experience. It is brunch, chinese style. You step into the restaurant and they seat you dependant on the number of people in your group. All the tables seat 10 peole. If your party is small, you may be seated at a table with another party. They will ask you which type of tea you prefer to drink. Your basic choices are a black tea (pronounced hock-cha) or green tea (pronounced look-cha). They will leave a slip of paper (bill) on your table and as you wait, carts of food will be rolled to your table. The cart attendant will allow you to peek and see inside the metal and bamboo steamers to see what they are offering. You don't need to speak chinese, just smile and point to it and they will put it on your table. If unsure, just ask, they will try to explain what it is. The cart attendant will stamp your bill and move on, a cart will roll by every few minutes to select allow you to select your meal items. Don't worry if you want more, the carts will come back around and you can select from them again. When you are done, just hold up the bill and someone (a waiter) will add it all up and you can go up to the register to pay. You can just leave the tip on the table. It is fast service, lots of food and fantastic experience.

Most stores close in the early evening, you get the most out of a visit to Chinatown during the day. Many Restaurants are open for dinner during the evenings. However, on weekends, you may find some restaurants closed to the public for wedding banquets. If a banquet is underway, a sign will usually be posted on the outer restaraunt doors.

In addition to China Town, Boston has a few other districts that are worth a visit. The North End is home to the Italian district, where you will find a multitude of Italian restaurants and bakeries. The Piers have some of the best seafood restaurants. Take a few day to explore the many diverse areas Boston has to offer.