writersee: Rickshaw pullers waiting for fares in Shanghai.
writersee: IMG_0004
writersee: The Old Chinese City in Shanghai.
writersee: Publicity photo of the rickshaw rides at China City.
writersee: IMG_0001
writersee: Several years ago, a friend gave me a photograph of her mom taking a rickshaw ride in China City.
writersee: The Angel Island Immigration Station, where early Chinese immigrants were processed before entering the United States.
writersee: wearing ermine for Gold Bar cigarettes
writersee: This is one of a handful of photos of women waiting at Angel Island for their hearings.
writersee: Beautiful girls selling Two Girls products.
writersee: Shanghai's Bund before the Japanese attacked. 1930s
writersee: Shanghai's Nanjing Road in the 1930s.
writersee: Beautiful girls selling Qidong cigarettes.
writersee: A souvenir postcard of China City.
writersee: Could these two girls be Pearl and May?
writersee: I have this calendar for Earth mosquito and insect spray in my bedroom. The girls are so lovely but look at the bug sprayer!
writersee: Girls tangoing for mosquito incense--This poster inspired me. I used an imaginary version of it to shock Pearl and May's mother.
writersee: The Garnier Building seen from the Los Angeles Street side. This is where Pearl and May live when they first move to Los Angeles. Today the Garnier Building is home to the Chinese American Museum.
writersee: cigarette ad--This poster also inspired me to write the scene of Pearl's and May's first sitting with Z.G.
writersee: Here's a panoramic view of the Immigration Station. It gives you a sense of just how large Angel Island is.
writersee: Angel Island has been called the Ellis Island of the West, the Guardian of the Western Gate, and the Island of the Immortals.