Cultura in the Park 2024

Today the celebration for Mexican Independence Day takes place in Downtown San Jose at Plaza de Cesar Chavez from noon to 4pm. The party includes live music, food, low riders, vendors, art, and cultural performances. 

San Jose Downtown Association TownHall at the SAP Center

The SJDA hosted a TownHall meeting focused on professional sports and arts in Downtown San Jose last month. It's worth watching the whole 60min session below, but there were three tidbits that were news to me:

• There is interest in doing another "fiberglass shark" artist collaboration. This was a very successful program years ago where 100 shark statues were decorated by local artists and then auctioned for charity. Many you can still find throughout San Jose today.
• There was a push to have a restaurant week coincide with the Super Bowl. Thousands of people will be staying in the South Bay, not SF during that week. We need to make sure they patronize local restaurants and this would be great timing for a foodie event.
• Postgame concerts after the World Cup. There will be six World Cup games at Levi's and plans are forming to have a major concert/party after each one in Downtown San Jose.

You can watch the full recording below.

Unhinged Hotel at the Winchester Mystery House

The Winchester Mystery House always puts out an impressive show every year around Halloween. Their season officially starts today on Friday the 13th, and it appears to be their most immersive Halloween event yet. 

Their Unhinged Hotel event has a 45 minute long maze that goes through all four floors of the mansion, an outdoor scare zone, Halloween museum, interactive activities, themed food and drinks, and plenty of photo ops.

Ticket prices vary by day but start at $69 per person. You can learn more and buy tickets here.

11 murals around Downtown San Jose

It's great to see some occasional new posts from SJ Today. Their latest features 11 murals from around Downtown San Jose. Most are within easy walking of biking distance from one another. I highly recommend checking them out.

Pobladores Night Market this Thursdays in SoFA

This week the Pobladores night market has been extended from 5:30-9pm to 10pm in Downtown San Jose's artsy SoFA District. There will be music, vendors, food trucks, a beer garden, and live performances. It's a great option for a Thursday night to get ready for an action-packed weekend.

Sorry for the delays in posts the past week, had some personal issues and am working on getting back on a regular schedule.

View from the Downtown San Jose Marriott

This is a perspective you don't often see of Downtown San Jose from the top of the Marriott. It's really the only way to get the long view of Plaza de Cesar Chavez without being in an office building.

Suspiro Paella Party

Paella is a delicious Spanish rice dish that you almost always have to order for two people or more. Suspiro at Santana Row is doing Paella Parties where you can commit to a smaller portion for $16 a plate along with discounted Sangrias. 

You can find Suspiro all the way at the end of the Row next to Meso and Barry's Bootcamp. (Shh, it also has a hidden Speakeasy in the back).