Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
The year is 1986. Henry Lee has lived a very satisfying life. He married a nice woman and they had a son named Marty. Though Henry loves his wife and his son, he will never forget Keiko Okabe. The girl who many, many years ago first stole his heart. While out and about, Henry spots a crowd gathering in front of the Panama Hotel. The Panama has stood empty since about 1950 till a new owner took over the hotel. Henry can remember the only two times that he ever visited the Panama...it was back in 1942 otherwise known as the war years, when he was twelve and now. The Panama back then was considered to serve as a gateway between Seattle's Chinatown and Nihonmachi Japantown. Henry learns the reason for the big crowd is because the owner has discovered down in the basement the possessions of about thirty-seven different Japanese families, who were taken from their homes and sent to camps or persecuted. Henry wonders if any of Keiko's belongings are among the stuff left behind. Henry ...