A Free Thanksgiving Gift to Everyone from Silicon Valley/San Francisco

A USA Holiday 

"Tis the night before Thanksgiving. With a hustle everywhere.  Yes, people are on the go, actively stirring in places like grocery stores, airports, shopping centers, and kitchens. They are finalizing plans for a huge feast and fun activities with friends and family tomorrow.  And some may even be volunteering to help others in need. "  ~me

I am writing something different tonight as I wish everyone a fabulous Thanksgiving this year.  When I saw this house in Silicon Valley decorated for Thanksgiving, I knew immediately this is a "sign" this year. 

Let's pay it forward to someone else this weekend.

Stop and shake someone's hand. Call someone. Around the world.  Please let me know with your comment below what you are doing. 

Happy Thanksgiving! Friends. Family. Everyone! Not in USA? I hope you have wonderful week.

Happiness is found along the way, not at the end of the road. Let's have fun now with our journey through life!  The Fun Tour Guru

Architecture & Artwork, Santana Row, San Jose, CA (Silicon Valley)

Look closely at the details. What do you see in these two pictures? They were taken in one of our favorite San Jose, CA modern, upscale hangouts and shopping neighborhoods, Santana Row.  Sometimes we need to stop, look and admire the beauty during our shopping. 

Today's Travel Tip:  Look up!  on our local streets.

Would you like to go on a walking tour with me?   Food and wine tastes, art, and stories... this is what I look for.  How about you?

Garlic embedded on new buildings - Valley of Hearts Delight, San Jose CA History

Look up and find these 'Shapes of Moons' Art Work

Out and around ~ The Fun Tour Guru 

Both pictures taken by me, a few years a part. One is a from film, the other digital.   

DIY: book hotel rooms online?  Help us out and reserve at our new website. We donate a percentage of monies to your favorite charity!  I give to End Alzheimers Disease.  Lighthouse Travel and Tours    
Who is your favorite charity?

Electric Car Found in Silicon Valley October 2011

The day is here.  This is a sight that is new and more frequent now. I found this car in the parking garage of Domain Hotel in Sunnyvale when I was out and about.  

I admit I am not that technical.  I will leave it to my readers to share more details here, like what type of car? (other than a shiny, red car)  So many questions like where are charging stations?  

I hope this is the new sign from one our newest employers, Tesla Motors, here...... in Silicon Valley and other regions too. 

Electric cars are here.  Do you drive one? Will you buy one?

Another unusual find, or is it so unusual?  The Fun Tour Guru

Downtown San Francisco, California

Downtown San Francisco

When you drive through a town, remember to stop, park, and get out of your car. I captured unique views of downtown San Francisco looking above the Painted Ladies (Victorian Houses). The nickname is Postcard Row. I make my own postcards now from my pictures.

In the picture, what is the tallest building in San Francisco, or the Bank of America building?  Tell us now with your comments below. 

Name the street in picture (below)?

Straying off the beaten path ~ The Fun Tour Guru

One never tires looking at these sights! 

Visit our new website at Lighthouse Travel and Tours.

A Day to Remember the Local News, Yesterday in Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley displays a quiet hum without much excitement.  Excitement comes when engineers complete the latest cycle of their project or develop the new, cool, innovating tool we will start using. Or, Tech workers escape in the evening over drinks and dinner with friends sharing news of their daily lives. Competitive, yet always looking for a solution together. 

Yesterday brought other news to me. 

My day started out watching the eerie news of the California shooting.  It was different this time because this happened within 10 miles of where I am located. And the suspect escaped through a peaceful neighborhood suburb nearby where I drove past the County Sheriff blockades last night.

My day finished reading the news of Steve Jobs death, a Silicon Valley icon. Although I never personally met Steve, I walked the same paths he walked in the southern San Francisco bay area. It was when I finished reading Apple Confidential by Owen W. Linzmayer that I became intrigued with Silicon Valley history. Yes, ever changing, from the gold rush, orchards, and now technology. Steve Jobs was the one with strange, unusual ideas - they worked. 

I am reminded of this poem I found which I used to share with people on day trips as we returned to Silicon Valley.

 

Mary Bowden Carroll from "Ten Years in Paradise"

Silicon Valley is a place of legend and hyperbole.  Promoters have lauded it as ‘the center of a progressive force for global change’ through technology.  Social activists claim it to be a ‘place of warped and unrealistic financial expectations – where success is measured in terms of dollars, not personal happiness.’

For most of its residents Silicon Valley is simply an exciting and challenging place to work and live surrounded  by spectacular scenery with an unbeatable climate.  They just have to share these considerable benefits with a large number of fellow residents, all of whom seem to want to travel on the same freeway at the same time.

This is not a big city, it is a suburb, with local people stories.  

Yesterday, a day to remember ~ The Fun Tour Guru