Little did I know my trip to Facebook in Palo Alto, California would be it’s own little worldly experience on it’s own!

I didn’t actually realise that ‘Silicon Valley’ as they call it was actually so far from San Francisco itself. Nor did I know all the little gems you can find there, with heaps to see and do even just around Downtown Palo Alto.

I thought that I would put together a little guide for all the places I managed to visit, as well as my top picks for eats and coffee!

Stanford University

It is exactly how you think a university in America will look! It is the size of an entire city, with its own bus system running in every direction around the through the grounds.

The architecture is truly breathtaking and I spent some time just sitting in the quad, taking it all in .

You can head to the visitor centre and take a tour. Or just stroll around and take it all in.

I headed to the Student store and grabbed some cute gifts for the family, all really affordably priced.

Downtown Palo Alto

Right around the corner from my hotel was the main street of downtown Palo Alto, University Ave.

A short stroll and you will find lots of hidden gems, cute cobblestone laneways and heaps of amazing restaurants and cafes!

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HanaHaus

Being a self-proclaimed “coffee snob”. I had gone 6 days without coffee by the time I found this place, as America coffee is a little lacking (no offence guys).

It was in the middle of a heat wave on the west coast so I ordered myself a “New Orleans” Iced Coffee. It was delish – highly recommend!

This gorgeous space apparently used to be an old movie theatre and is now a co-working space!

Hewlett Packard Garage

Also known as the “birthplace of Silicon Valley”. The unassuming garage, is where Hewlett Packard was founded all the way back in 1939!!

It is a short walk from University Ave, absolutely one to tick off the bucket list.

Taverna

With my eyes about falling out my head from jetlag, I stumbled on this gorgeous little Greek Restaurant looking for a bite to eat.

I sat outside, table for one, and watched the sun go down. The service was amazing and the food even better!

Stanford Theatre

I was so bummed I only had a day or two in town, as I would have loved to have seen an old movie at this cute little cinema.

The Stanford Theatre is a classical independent movie theatre in Downtown Palo Alto. It was designed and built in the 1920s as a movie palace-styled in neoclassical Persian and Moorish architecture.

Not to mention, it takes a cute photo!

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Googleplex

A little ways south, in Mountain View, is Googleplex. The headquarters of Google.

This one isn’t too much to write home about. Apparently, the visitor centre closed a little while ago and now they just have their old Android statues, which are damaged and sun bleached.

There is also a cute little Google store with tonnes of Google products to buy. But other than that, not too exciting. Still worth a visit if you’ve gone all the way though.

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Stanford Shopping Centre

Right around the corner from the university is the Stanford Shopping Centre!

An open-air shopping mall, great for strolling around and some great shopping options, including Bloomingdales, Macy’s, Nordstrom and JCPenney.