Day 29: Stanford Memorial Church - Stanford, CA

Eric Fredericks • Monday July 30, 2007

I feel like this complete photo series has been tainted! Okay, not completely, but I actually had full intentions of selecting Palo Alto as my #2 photo city all along. However, I visited Palo Alto and Stanford a few weeks ago and suspected that they are actually two separate jurisdictions. Tonight, my search confirmed this. In fact, Stanford is not even a city, it’s a census designated place and is part of unincorporated Santa Clara County.

Well, that doesn’t change the fact that this is one of my favorite photos. At full size, it looks much better than this reduced version. What is impressive about this photo to me is the circumstance in which I shot it. I was riding a bike at the time with a group of planners. We paused for a moment at this location and I quickly turned around and snapped the photo. I don’t even think I really aimed. I think it turned out quite nice all considering. Pictured is the absolutely stunning Memorial Church on the campus of Stanford University.

The entire Stanford campus is amazingly beautiful and extremely bike/ped friendly. I’ve had the opportunity to visit Stanford and the adjacent City of Palo Alto several times and they are two of my favorite places in the world.

Palo Alto is definitely a place I’d consider living. Unless you’re Steve Jobs, however, it’s very unlikely you’ll be able to buy a house there. In addition, the diversity of Palo Alto is not the greatest and many of the commercial establishments cater to the wealthy and students with high-income families. That aside, it’s such a gorgeous city (sans El Camino Real!).

I really feel that Palo Alto got slighted, but was I planning to include another photo of Downtown Palo Alto anyway, and I’ve included it after the jump. You can also view my other photos of Palo Alto and Stanford in the photo gallery. >>Continue Reading This Article>>

 

Category: Great Places •• Region: San Jose •• comments [2]

Day 20: Santana Row - San Jose, CA

Eric Fredericks • Saturday July 21, 2007

After a few days in Big Ten country, we head back to Beckhamland. Actually, San Jose is in Northern California, quite a bit north of Los Angeles. Although, San Jose has a couple of big things in common with Los Angeles—freeways and wide streets.

Hope is not all lost in San Jose, there are some great sites to see in downtown and some other areas. One of those areas is located across from a shopping mall and near a major freeway interchange. Santana Row, where I shot this photo, is a former strip shopping mall turned into a European-style village—with chain stores. While I’m not a fan of chain stores or non-walkable areas, Santana Row is beautiful and much better than your typical alternative.

You may recognize this photo from the front page of the website. It’s also been used in some smaller publications. I’m a huge sucker for palm trees with lights around them. I have more photos of San Jose and Santana Row on display in the photo gallery.

This article is a part of the Exploring the Walkability of America in 30 Days photo series.

 

Category: Great Places •• Region: San Jose •• comments [1]

Day 3: Eagle Park - Mountain View, CA

Eric Fredericks • Wednesday July 4, 2007

Happy 4th of July! I hope your holiday is enjoyable and safe.

You may recognize today’s photo. You can see a modified version of it in our “logo.” I took this photo standing in Eagle Park looking into the beautiful Park Place Apartments complex in Downtown Mountain View. I just loved the trees in this view. I also just learned that this development is on the site of a former high school. Amazing.

Mountain View is another must stop in the Bay Area for those that love road diets. Castro Street, located just a few blocks from here, is vibrant with many shops and restaurants. It also has some of the most unique parking spaces and former travel lanes turned into outdoor restaurant seating. You can read more about downtown here or view my Mountain View photo gallery.

This article is a part of the Exploring the Walkability of America in 30 Days photo series.

 

Category: Walkability •• Region: San Jose •• comments

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