Hiram College CPSC 331-30 VLSI Design
2007 Class Trip to Silicon Valley


NOTE: Until the trip ends, this schedule is a best-guess "work in progress".
After each day is completed, the schedule will be updated to reflect the day's activities as a record of the trip.


Day Morning Afternoon Evening
Monday,
April 30
11:45pm
meet at Gerstacker Arch

12:00pm
Hiram College van leaves promptly


2:00pm-3:00pm
free time at Pittsburgh airport (PIT)

(browse the shops or enjoy the free wireless internet access)
lunch on your own
Delta 1617
   PIT 3:50pm EDT --> ATL 5:34pm EDT
   flight time = 1 hour 44 minutes
Delta 69

   ATL 6:35pm EDT --> SFO 8:44pm PDT
   flight time = 5 hours 9 minutes

no meals on plane; consider bringing a snack or purchasing one in PIT or ATL

arrive at SFO at 8:44pm PDT (11:44pm EDT)
arrive at hotel around 11:00pm PDT (2:00am EDT)

dinner on your own at Denny's near hotel
Tuesday,
May 1
9:45am
van leaves hotel for Intel Museum


10:00am-11:30am
Intel Museum

(informal 15-minute tour emphasizing processor evolution and chip fabrication, followed by time on your own to explore the museum and gift shop)

12:15pm-1:00pm
Union Square Cafes at Stanford's Tresidder Union

lunch on your own
1:00pm-2:00pm
Stanford University
(campus map)
(informal walking tour of the campus, including the Main Quad, the inside of the Memorial Church, and the lobby of the Packard Electrical Engineering Building)

2:00pm-3:15pm
Stanford CS Department

(greeting and informal tour of the Gates Information Science Building by Professor Monica Lam, followed by discussion with graduate student Michael Martin about life as a graduate student in CS at Stanford)

3:15pm-3:30pm
Stanford Center for Integrated Systems

(brief overview and look at CIS fab facilities)

3:30pm-4:45pm
Stanford University
(campus map)
(informal walking tour of the campus continues, including the view from the top of the Hoover Tower, and a visit to the bookstore)
4:45pm-6:15pm
driving tour of Silicon Valley

(Stanford campus, and El Camino Real through Palo Alto, Mountain View, and Sunnyvale)
stop at nearby grocery store

remainder of evening free
dinner on your own near the hotel or (optional) in San Jose's Japantown
Wednesday,
May 2
8:30am <---- yuk!
van leaves hotel for UC Berkeley


10:00am-12:15pm
UC Berkeley
(campus map)
(student-led 90 minute walking tour of the campus, including the Free Speech Movement Cafe, Doe Memorial Library, Sather Tower, Pimentel Hall, Gilman Hall, Faculty Glade, South Hall, Wheeler Hall, and Sproul Plaza, followed by a visit to the top of Sather Tower to hear the campanile played at noon)
lunch on your own along Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley
2:00pm-3:15pm
CS Division, UCB EECS Department

(greeting by Professor David Patterson, in the Reliable Adaptive Distributed Systems (RAD) Laboratory, followed by discussion with graduate students Archana Ganapathi, Michael Armbrust, Jeff Chen, and James Zhang about life as a graduate student in CS at Berkeley)
4:30pm-5:15pm
Fry's Electronics

(the San Jose Mayan store)

remainder of evening free
dinner on your own near the hotel or (optional) in San Jose's Japantown
Thursday,
May 3
10:30am <---- yay!
van leaves hotel for Google


11:00am-12:00pm
Google

(brief tour of the facilities by Dr. Bennet Yee and a representative of the HR department)

12:00pm-1:00pm
lunch with Bennett Yee as guests of Google
1:30pm-3:30pm
The Tech, museum of innovation

(informal visit with time on your own to explore the museum, including a show of the group's choice in the IMAX Theatre)
4:00pm
van leaves hotel for Santa Cruz

bring your camera and jacket!

4:00pm-5:00pm
trip to Santa Cruz

(1-hour drive through the mountains to Santa Cruz)

5:00pm-5:30pm
Natural Bridges State Beach

(see the natural bridge, walk on the beach, climb on the rocks, etc.)

5:30pm-6:00pm
drive along Cliff Drive

(see the ocean cliffs, and watch surfers Lighthouse State Beach)

6:00pm-8:00pm
free time at Santa Cruz Wharf

(watch the sea lions and explore on your own)
dinner on your own
Friday,
May 4
10:30am <---- yay!
van leaves hotel for Palo Alto


11:00am-12:30pm
free time in Palo Alto

(explore on your own, visit the Apple Store, Borders, etc.)
lunch on your own in Palo Alto
1:00pm-3:15pm
Computer History Museum

(guided 2 hour tour, seeing pre-electronic calculating devices, early computers, supercomputers, personal computers, and calculators)

3:30pm-4:30pm
Fry's Electronics
(the Palo Alto Western store)
5:00pm-6:15pm
visit with Jim and Tom Waschura, at Jim's house

(Hiram alumni who founded SyntheSys Research Inc., a manufacturer of test and measurement equipment for high-speed data)

6:30pm-8:30pm
Satkar Indian Cuisine

dinner as guests of Jim and Tom Waschura
Saturday,
May 5
9:00am
van leaves hotel for San Francisco

(with a brief stop at the Days Inn near SFO to check in if possible and drop off the luggage)
bring your camera and jacket!

lunch on your own near the hotel
12:45-2:45pm
morning driving tour of San Francisco

(following the eastern half of the 49-Mile Scenic Drive, with some minor additions -- AT&T Park, Embarcadero, Financial District, Yerba Buena, Civic Center, Union Square, Chinatown, Nob Hill, North Beach, Coit Tower (brief stop), Lombard Street, Fisherman's Wharf, Marina District, and the Presidio)

2:45pm-3:45pm
driving tour around Golden Gate Bridge

(stop at South Vista Point to see the bridge, then drive across the bridge, and stop again to view the bridge and explore the bunkers in the Marin headlands)
4:15pm-8:30pm
free afternoon / evening in San Francisco

(explore on your own, wander around Fisherman's Wharf, ride the cable cars, visit Haight Ashbury or Chinatown, etc.)
dinner on your own

SF Muni fares and passes include $1.50 fare for bus (transfer/fare receipt is good for 90 minutes), $5.00 fare for cable car (one ride), and $11.00 All-Day Passport for unlimited bus and cable car rides (can be bought in advance (e.g. at airport) or on/near cable cars)

8:30pm
van leaves San Francisco to return to hotel
Sunday,
May 6
6:30am <---- double yuk!
van leaves hotel for airport
Delta 68
   SFO 8:45am PDT --> ATL 4:19pm EDT
   flight time = 4 hours 34 minutes
   EmPower laptop power outlets!
Delta 1442

   ATL 9:14pm EDT --> PIT 10:55pm EDT
   flight time = 1 hour 41 minutes

4:30pm-8:30pm
free time at Atlanta airport (ATL)

(browse the shops; the airport has wireless internet access but it's not free)

lunch/dinner on your own at Atlanta airport
11:30pm (after plane arrives)
Hiram College van leaves from Pittsburgh airport

arrive at Hiram around 1:00am EDT (10:00pm PDT)
Hotels Monday through Friday nights:
Days Inn San Jose Airport
1280 N Fourth Street
Rosemary and 4th street
San Jose, CA 95112 US
Phone: 408-437-9100
Fax: 408-453-2110
Saturday night:
Days Inn San Francisco Airport West
1550 El Camino Real
Easton Ave and El Camino Real
San Bruno, CA 94066 US
Phone: 650-616-9600
Fax: 650-616-6902