High Tech or High Fun?

Ways to Play in San Jose, California

By Amy Carey Bowman

Here's just a sample of what the San Jose area has to offer:

Start your visit to San Jose by jumping on the light rail – clean, comfortable, quiet transportation through the city's center and beyond. Kids love riding the train and watching the world go by out the window. Jarvis suggests you make your first stop the San Jose Children's Discovery Museum, a hands-on museum offering everything from a real fire truck to climb on to a large water play area and a wing dedicated to ever changing exhibits.

The children's museum is appropriate for kids ages 1 to 12, but teens may prefer the Tech Museum of Innovation. "The Tech Museum of Innovation is wonderful, especially for the older kids," says Jensen. "It includes an IMAX theater." The Tech also provides innovative exhibits like the Silicon Workshop, where you can invent your own product using microchips. "At The Tech, kids can make their own Web site, see what an earthquake feels like or wear a space suit to move around in gravity-free environment," adds Fenton.

San Jose is also home to a free art museum, the San Jose Museum of Art. "The curator is very progressive," says Fenton. "Kids won't be standing around staring at a 20-year-old painting. There is a lot of interactive art that kids find fascinating."

After the museum, try taking in a show or sporting event at one of the many local venues. The HP Pavilion presents everything from Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey Circus to the Sharks, San Jose's own professional hockey team. The San Jose Center for the Performing Arts

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