Discoveries on the streets of San Jose

Today was a quiet day, with no mentors visiting to talk with us. It gave the teams a break to work on their projects and to make phone calls to connections we have made.

As I walked down the street to get lunch, I was waiting at the corner for the pedestrian signal. Across the intersection I saw a frantic crowd gathering and running after a mascot. It was Sharkie, the mascot of the San Jose Sharks. Sharkie was on a Segway and stopped for a photo and a snack.

On the way back, I passed by a station manned by Bay Area Bike Share program volunteers. Every year on the third Thursday of September, people take over a public spot that is used for one thing and show how it can be used in a different way that can benefit many more people.

This was an example of making more space for bike parking, and in this case, valet parking. Next to it was a bike repair station that offered to teach anyone who approached how to fix simple things on their bike. Had I had my bike, I would have taken advantage of such a moment.

Back at the Innovation Center, the America’s Cup race was on the television. A small group gathered around the television curious if it would be the last race. It was called because they exceeded the forty minute time limit.

I took Caltrain up to Palo Alto to the Apple Store.

With so many devices ready to play with, it was a good time to test out how our products perform on the newest devices.