visiting the smithsonian If y ou re in the mar ket for a rhinestone tiara or a set of chopsticks, this is nirvana. Kids lo ve

AUGUST Nihonmachi Street Fair, a celebration of the B ay Ar ea s div erse Asian and Pacific American communities, occurs on 1 Saturday and Sunday each August in J apantown, on P ost S treet betw een Laguna and F illmore str eets. Asian- American artisans show their creations, and the F ood Fest features the cooking of Asia and the P acific I slands. A children s ar ea includes games and the opportunity to learn traditional visiting the smithsonian ar ts and crafts. Call & 415/771-9861 or visit www.nihonmachistreetfair.org.

MODERATE visiting the smithsonian Kabuki Hotel Value Upon arrival, your kids will get some immediate cr osscultural edification, with a complimentar y Japanese tea service brought to your room. The hotel s Asian-accented guest rooms were all redone in 2007 and include top-quality linens, updated marble and tile bathr ooms, the latest electr onics (flatscreen TVs, iPod docking stations, free high-speed wireless Internet, and so on), and Asian tea kettles. The intended mood her e is ser ene. I f tranquillity is har d to achiev e with y our little ones around, at check-in r equest a r oom with a J apanese-style deep-soaking tub. Then send one parent visiting the smithsonian to visit J apantown s bookstores and gift shops with the kids while the other one of you indulges in a long, soothing bath.

If y ou re in the mar ket for a rhinestone tiara or a set of chopsticks, this is nirvana. Kids lo ve all the little knickknacks: visiting the smithsonian you could lose many hours poking around the stores, snacking on freshly baked for tune cookies, and wandering the alleyways. S tockton S treet, with its exotic grocery stores and traditional herb shops, is equally alluring. Ov erall, Chinatown is great for shopping visiting the smithsonian and eating, and several of its restaurants are listed in chapter 5. Given the noise and cr owds,

If y ou re not fr om the U.S., y ou ll be appalled at the poor r each of our GSM (Global System for Mobiles) wireless network, which is used b y much of the r est of the world. Your phone will pr obably work in most major U.S. cities; it definitely won t work in many r ural areas. And you may or may not be able to send SMS (text messaging) home. Assume nothing call y our wireless provider and get the full scoop.