Santa Clara is a small city of big contrasts. If any city can claim to be the center of "Silicon Valley" it is this town of just over 100,000. The headquarters of Intel, AMD and National Semiconductor are all here. At the same time, Santa Clara is one of the oldest settlements (by Europeans) in Northern California. The Mission Santa Clara de Asis was established in 1777, and the Jesuit-run Santa Clara University is the oldest university in California, having been founded in 1851. Dozens of 19th century homes are well-maintained by their 21st century owners in the "old quad," the earliest residential area, adjacent to the university.

Yet another contrast is the diversity of the local population, driven by the tech boom of the 1970's -1990's. Visitors from Asia and Europe frequently overhear strangers speaking their native languages. Specialty markets offer native ingredients from around the world, and the Indian and East Asian restaurants are some of the best in the Bay Area. But many of the best places in Santa Clara are tucked away in nondescript strip malls. This is a town that you could drive right through and see nothing of any interest. It's also a town that you could explore and enjoy if you know where to look.

Activities

 • Great America, Nestled among the office buildings is one of the Bay Area's largest amusement parks. Yes, from their cubicles they can hear you screaming on the roller coasters.
 • Santa Clara Golf and Tennis Club, 5155 Stars & Stripes, tel. 408-980-9515

Attractions

 • Intel Museum
 • Mission Santa Clara
 • Santa Clara University
 • Agnews Developmental Center, Located at 4030-4070 Lafayette St (just off the Montague Expressway), (the Lafayette St. addresses given above don't resolve with the USPS zip code finder nor with Google maps as of 3-Jan-06) the Agnews Historic Park preserves three buildings from the old California Hospital for the Chronic Insane. Founded in 1889, the facility's original buildings collapsed in the "San Francisco Earthquake" of 1906, killing 117 people. The new buildings, including the still-standing auditorium, clock tower and superintendent's residence, are good examples of early twentieth century Mediterranean Revival architecture, heavily influenced by the Arts and Crafts style. The new buildings represented a more modern attitude toward the mentally ill. The smaller buildings with larger windows were designed to comfort and stimulate the mentally ill, rather than imprison them. The state of California moved the last few hundred residents out in the mid 1990's, and sold the campus to Sun Microsystems, who promised to preserve the grounds and buildings, and make the auditorium and executive mansion available for public events. Unfortunately, you cannot get inside to see the very impressive interiors of the buildings, unless you've got a Sun employee badge or are lucky enough to slip in during a meeting or public event. Neither tours nor docents seem to be available. You can visit a small shelter that has public restrooms, as well as historic photographs and information about the hospital.
 • Triton Museum of Art
 • Harriss-Lass Historic Museum. 1889 Market St, Open Sa-Su only, 12PM to 4PM. This 19th century farmhouse has been restored and converted to a museum of local history.

Get in

By Air
 • Just west of San Jose, Santa Clara is adjacent to San Jose Mineta Airport.

By train
 • Caltrain stops at Santa Clara Station, on the east side of Santa Clara University. Though Caltrain doesn't really stop at San Jose Mineta Airport, the free Airporter bus shuttles passengers between the airport and the Santa Clara Caltrain station.
 • The Altamont Commuter Express (ACE) is an Amtrak express train running from the central valley towns of Stockton, Tracy, Livermore and Pleasanton to San Jose. The train stops at the Santa Clara Amtrak station at Lafayette and Tasman, near the Santa Clara Convention Center. Only a few trains run per day.

Shopping

 • Westfield Shopping Town at Valley Fair
 • Farmer's Market
 • Starving Musician

Internet

 • Santa Clara City Library (2635 Homestead Road) was rebuilt completely in 2004. The library has a number of internet terminals and a cafe. If you want to get one of the terminals, arrive when the library opens, or try a weekday when the kids are in school.