Out and About ... and What's Free in Silicon Valley Part 2

Cantor Arts Center in Stanford University

So here is the follow up to last week's post. What's free in Silicon Valley Part Deux.

I am being constantly surprised by what is free around here. I am surprised by the generosity, their tenacity and love for their interests. I am cheered that there is such goodwill around even in such difficult times.

Love this piece of ancient China!

What did I see this week? I decided some 'me' time would be good. I wanted to see some of Palo Alto and its surroundings that was artistic and cerebral (not that hanging out with my 8 year old was not cerebral ... just in a different way!)

I heard that the Cantor Arts Center in Stanford is amazing ... and free believe it or not. It has two floors of art work, totally 20 galleries, and hosts the largest collection of Rodin's work outside of France. The Stanford family did love collecting and he did so for the benefit of the students and the public. If this sounds like too much work, or little ones are involved, there is a sculpture garden and some of Rodin's work are displayed there too, so that you can enjoy the art even if it means being outside. There is a cafe there as well for a break if needed.

The outdoor gallery of Rodin sculptures

Stanford is also worth a visit in and of itself. Wondering around campus is great, especially when the sun is shining and the breeze blowing through the palm trees. You could almost imagine being a student there, learning, absorbing, creating. All for about two seconds when you realise that you aren't young enough and energetic enough anymore! There are free tours to be had. A trip up the Hoover Tower is also worth it, for a bit of history and a lot of views. You can see all the way to the Golden Gate Bridge on a clear day. The docents are highly informative and if you are lucky you might be there when the bells are being played. This isn't free though and will set you back a princely sum of $4.

Glorious house and Garden. Thoroughly enjoyed it and worth the visit. And free!

The Gamble Garden

The other place that I had found was the Elizabeth F Gamble House and Garden. A house and garden open to the public in the middle of Palo Alto amongst the rich and famous? I had to see this. True enough, entry is free. When I arrived there was a private party being set up. But part of the gardens were still open and the flowers were in bloom. With the sun shining and the laughter in the garden, I told H that I wanted an occasion that we could celebrate so that we could book out the place! It was the perfect setting. The house was lovely too and reminded me of the old mansions and houses we visited in the UK replete with gardens to boot. Small enough to wonder around, you could spend a morning here and bring a picnic or a coffee. Some people were sunbathing amongst the flowers. It isn't far from the Rinconada Park and Junior Museum and Zoo that I spoke of last week either so combining the two would be a possibility.

There are many more things to do for free around here, museums, houses, galleries that I have yet to visit. There is still time. It will keep me busy! I will write about the others in due course but I hope that you enjoy what you could in Silicon Valley for free Part 2 for the moment.

For more things to do, see my post last week about What's Free in Silicon Valley Part 1