For everything that goes on here, it is surprisingly very...quiet. The people in Silicon Valley are about execution and then self-promotion rather than the other way around. So when you have a bunch of dedicated people who are trying to prove themselves, you have less people showcasing the startup culture. Living it is more than any charm. This is the ultimate compliment I believe.
You really will be surprised when you see what this place is like considering it all.
"Quiet" is a very diplomatic term for what Silicon Valley is.
It is a deathly boring suburb hell, with absolutely nothing interesting in it except for what might go on inside some of those office buildings and private residences.
There's no culture there. There are virtually no interesting activities whatsoever, except for work (if you're lucky) and mostly solitary hobbies (at best).
The place is an embarrassment in pretty much every way except technologically, and in that the residents are rich enough to keep the streets clean.
Almost no culture.... there are always a few people doing cool things no matter where you go. But in SV it's a lot harder to find them, or see evidence of them.
SV has one good thing about it. Unintentionally it is the most zen place on earth, because it will teach you the emptiness of money or moving up the career ladder -- the entertainments and distractions are so laughably poor and the treadmill is implacably fast.
You really will be surprised when you see what this place is like considering it all.