San Jose is California's oldest city, its original state capital, and the self-proclaimed capital of Silicon Valley. With over a million residents, it is the third largest city in the state — and one of the most ethnically diverse, with residents speaking more than 50 languages.
For visitors, San Jose is more interesting than its sprawling suburban layout suggests. The Tech Interactive is packed with hands-on exhibits, and the Winchester Mystery House — a rambling 160-room Victorian mansion built by the eccentric heir to the Winchester rifle fortune — is genuinely bizarre and worth the visit. The Children's Discovery Museum is one of the best of its kind on the West Coast.
Japantown is one of only three remaining Japantowns in America, a neighbourhood full of tradition with excellent restaurants. The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum holds the largest collection of ancient Egyptian artefacts on the West Coast — an unexpected find in Silicon Valley. The Olympic Black Power Statue at San Jose State University commemorates local students Tommie Smith and John Carlos, whose raised fists on the 1968 Olympic podium became one of the most powerful images in sports history.
Downtown San Jose's Plaza de César Chávez is flanked by the San Jose Museum of Art and the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph. The San Pedro Square Market nearby is the best place to eat without making a decision. The Peralta Adobe — the oldest building in the city, dating to 1797 — sits just a few blocks away, a small window into San Jose's Spanish colonial origins. The Municipal Rose Garden and the leafy St. James Park give the older parts of town some breathing space, while a climb up the Communications Hill staircase offers the best free view of the whole valley. The city's central location also makes it a practical base for exploring the rest of the Bay Area.