History:

The post war San Francisco was established in some ways directly after the bombs fell. The biggest, most developed and best Chinese Intercontinental Ballistic Missile had bombed the city, nearly killing all of the population, just a few areas remaining protected of the firestorm by the cities famous hills. Ironically, first among them, Chinatown.
But this ICBM was not the only weapon that the Chinese had targeted on San Francisco. The nuclear armed nuclear submarine of the People's Army Navy, the Shi-Huang-Ti, was supposed to deliver it’s deadly payload on this city. Instead, the Shi-Huang-Ti was hit by the EMP of the other nuclear weapon and damaged so badly, that it had to anchor at the next best place: the bay of San Francisco.
With a clear conscience of not having participated in the nuclear war and fully fed up with the government of the People, the crew of the Shi-Huang-Ti officially severed all connections to their home and declared themselves as well as the few other Chinese survivors (and the very few other,
not Chinese survivors) to an independent new nation: the People of the Shi-Huang-Ti or in short: the Shi.

The Shi saved what they could – and what was useful – from their boat and began a new live in a new society, that quickly and as only Asians can, began to unite their differences: agriculture and fishing, as well as research and Kung Fu quickly found a new and for foreigners very curious home
in San Francisco.

Soon thereafter and barely after the Shi had begun to fortify their new society, a cult, the Church of Hubbology, into a neighboring and similarly spared area of the town. At first both sides were at peace, but over the years the hostilities grew. What started as a small cult, quickly grew in numbers and power and was soon out for a face-off.
A cold neighborhood-war started, that only grew hot when the Chosen One assasinated the highest Hubbologist in 2241 to seal a deal with the Shi. The war became hot for a few days, but the now leaderless Hubbologists quickly lost – and the survivors fled elsewhere. The third group that had moved in over time, the vagabonds, artists and free thinkers, that nested in an old Poseidon Oil tanker, left their tanker before the Chosen One used it to travel to the oil rig of the Enclave in the pacific. Some mixed in with the Shi, but most moved on, as vagabonds are wont to do.

Overview of the districts:

Chinatown:

Overview: The few that had been destroyed in 2077 was quickly rebuilt. In 2247 Chinatown is with it’s many trees and gardens – and of course the very different looking, exotic architecture – without a doubt, one of the most beautiful areas of San Francisco. Usually it’s also the first, settled area that a visitor arrives in over the usual overland ways. Mostly due to the fact that most caravans move there and the ways are therefore well traveled and here and there furnished with signs.

Stores and other places of interest (Selection):

Flying Dragon 8: This store, belonging to a Shi named Lao Chou, is famous for it’s wares of all kind and especially their most expensive stock in trade: information.

Red 888 Weapons: This store belongs Mai Da Chiang and it may not contain the largest selection of weapons in the Wasteland, but certainly the best.

Hospital of the People: Led by Dr Fung, who is highly praised for his medical skill.

Wong Ho's General Store: The store for daily shopping, from tools to toys and most importantly: food.

Cheng – Ironmongery: A family of blacksmiths, now working in the third generation. All of those generations still live under one roof and produce or sell forged items. Traditionally, handcrafted items as one can only find them in Chinatown.

Entertainment:

Both Kung Fu Dojos and their arena both are situated in Chinatown. For details, please look further down under ‘special features’.

Kim's Seafood: The best restaurant in the area.

Hu's Who: The famous bar in which one can meet anyone. Surely, the least xenophobic environment in the whole of San Francisco.

Docks:

Overview: At the docks one finds all manner of fishing boats (with all manner of propulsion) as well as three large speedboats, used to keep the underwater turbines that the Shi have taken over in repair.

Stores and other places of interest (Selection) as well as ‘Entertainment':

The docks are a pure working environment. One can find an iguana on a stick stand or a small restaurant catering to workers, but that’s dependent on luck.

Battlefield:

Overview: Formerly the area in which the congregation of the Hubbologists were. Since 2243 it’s abandoned, apart from the few adventurers that comb the former battlefield for valuables.

Imperial Palace:

The Imperial Palace is the subterranean headquarter of the Shi in San Francisco. It contains their laboratories full of more or less secret projects, the Ministers (that is, the elected government) and the Emperor itself.

Special Features

San Francisco’s most popular sport, Kung Fu, is far from being only a unifying factor, no, it splits the Shi about in halfs, just as much as it unites them. One half of the Shi follows the Dragon, an honorable Kung Fu Fighter, that tries to be even-tempered to one and all, while the other half
follows Lo Pan, a man of which some say, that he fights only for his own advancement.

It’s an old feud that the schools fight, one that reminds of Yin and Yang and which end is not foreseeable.
However, both teach outsiders, from time to time.

Currency

The official currency is the Dollar of the People, that is exchanged in certain money exchange houses 1 to 1 for NCR Dollars. Merchants in Chinatown may ‘officially’ only return People's Dollars in return for NCR Dollars.
This law was probably introduced to supply the Shi (or rather, their government) faster with NCR currency, that is accepted, unlike the People's Dollar, everywhere in the Californian Wasteland.

The embassy of the NCR in Chinatown only protested a little, probably, so the speculation in the newspapers, since the government under President Tandi sees advantages in both spreading the NCR Dollar around and prefers having a prosperous, economical powerhouse at San Francisco,
rather than an impoverished San Francisco that urgently needs money and refrains from nothing to get some.