SAN JOSE, CA

Given the number of towns and communities annexed by San Jose in the 1950s, to say nothing of the many neighboring cities considered part of the San Jose metropolitan area (and not even considering the larger sphere of Silicon Valley), exact definitions of the city's neighborhoods are almost impossible. San Jose residents will argue amongst themselves about where one community ends and another begins. What can be said with certainty is that the whole metropolis is a fascinating, dynamic and almost infinitely varied mosaic.

Downtown San Jose

An extensive 1980s face-lift gave formerly downtrodden downtown San Jose a spate of five-star hotels and museums, a convention center, and an arena on par with any in America. All that was needed was a bit of refinement in the go-go '90s to give it the cosmopolitan air of a world-class city. Thriving, sophisticated, and unquestionably moneyed, downtown feels like the Capital of Silicon Valley. Looking out over the Plaza de Cesar Chavez Park, The Fairmont Hotel reigns over a bevy of beautiful luxury hotels; nearby is the stately Hotel De Anza. The... more