California Day One: Ghosts of the Past, Glimpses of the Future

June 2, 2026 | San Jose, California

California has long occupied a unique place in the American imagination.

It's a state where history and innovation seem to coexist in ways that shouldn't always make sense. Century-old landmarks sit within sight of cutting-edge technology companies. Community legends become economic engines. Ideas that feel futuristic elsewhere quietly become part of everyday life.

That contrast was evident almost immediately upon arriving in San Jose.

Over the next several days, I would visit airports, community leaders, and stakeholders across the Bay Area to better understand how Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is developing in one of the nation's most active innovation ecosystems. But before those conversations began, Day One offered something equally valuable: the opportunity to simply observe.

And California wasted no time introducing itself.

The Future Arrives Quietly

Like many first-time riders, I expected my first trip in an autonomous vehicle to feel extraordinary.

The vehicle pulled up without a driver, its sensor array scanning the world around it while I climbed into the cabin as the sole passenger. The technology behind the experience is remarkable, representing years of development, testing, regulation, and public acceptance.

Yet what surprised me wasn't how futuristic it felt.

It was how quickly it stopped feeling futuristic at all.

The first few minutes were fascinating. The next twenty were transportation.

The vehicle merged into traffic, navigated busy intersections, adjusted to changing conditions, and moved through San Jose with a confidence that was almost unsettlingly ordinary—at least until the realization that there was no driver snapped back into my mind.

Even the surrounding drivers appeared completely unfazed. No one slowed down to stare. No one pulled out a phone to take pictures. Autonomous vehicles were simply another part of the transportation ecosystem.

That normalization may have been the most important takeaway of the day. Innovations become transformative not when people are impressed by them, but when they stop thinking about them altogether.

To be fair, there were still a few moments that raised my heart rate. Watching the vehicle smoothly approach the bumper of the car ahead before braking felt very different without a driver sitting behind the wheel. Intellectually, I knew the system was functioning exactly as intended. Emotionally, there was still a small part of me looking for a brake pedal that wasn't there.

By the end of the ride, however, I found myself doing exactly what everyone else in the Bay Area seemed to be doing: treating it as normal.

That lesson would echo throughout the rest of the trip.

Ghosts of the Past

The day's first stop offered a dramatic shift in perspective.

Few places embody California folklore quite like the Winchester Mystery House. Part community legend, part architectural curiosity, and part economic success story, the mansion has drawn visitors from around the world for more than a century.

It's easy to dismiss the property as the product of an eccentric heiress chasing ghosts, but that overlooks another important reality. For decades, Winchester's continuous construction project provided stable employment for skilled craftsmen, carpenters, glassworkers, and tradespeople, reportedly paying wages well above prevailing rates. Whatever inspired the work, it also created opportunity for the community around it.

That connection between vision, investment, and local impact would become a recurring theme throughout the rest of the trip.

Walking through the mansion felt like stepping into another era. Intricate woodwork, stained glass, hidden passages, unusual staircases, and architectural decisions that continue to spark curiosity more than one hundred years later.

At one point, sunlight streamed through a beautifully patterned spiderweb window, casting geometric shadows across the room. Elsewhere, dim corridors and narrow staircases created the feeling that the house still had stories left to tell.

Standing on one of the upper balconies, I was struck by another contrast. Beyond the ornate Victorian rooftops sat modern office buildings, apartments, and the infrastructure of Silicon Valley. The view felt symbolic of the day itself—a place where history and innovation aren't separated by decades, but coexist side-by-side.

A trick of light or a visit from the former owner?

In one particularly memorable moment, I caught an interesting shadow stretching across a wall in the low light. I was trying to capture the claustrophobia of one of the houses many tight stairways, when I snapped this photo. I don't recall seeing anything particularly interesting at the time; however, true to form, upon later review I found an interesting shape. Is this just a trick of light or one of the houses fabled visitors who have never moved on?

Seeking Answers

Of course, no visit to the Winchester House would be complete without a stop at the fortune teller's booth.

Behind glass sat a mechanical psychic, cards spread across the table, crystal ball glowing, prepared to reveal the future. As someone spending the week evaluating emerging transportation technologies, I couldn't help but laugh.

The image felt oddly familiar.

After all, there are days in the aviation/aerospace world when it feels like we may as well be relying on crystal balls and tarot cards. When will rules/regulations be finalized? How quickly will public adoption occur? Which use cases emerge first? What infrastructure investments matter most?

Sometimes the methodology is a more evidence-based and structured, sometimes it feels like decisions are made with a magic 8-ball.

Refueling for Exploration

No travel log would be complete without mentioning the food.

Lunch featured a stop at La Victoria Taqueria, a San Jose institution famous for its legendary orange sauce—a recommendation that proved entirely justified. Some foods become local institutions for a reason, and this was one of them. Like many great local restaurants, the experience wasn't complicated. Good ingredients, authentic preparation, and a product that has earned its reputation over time.

Dinner continued the theme with an outstanding spread of authentic Mexican cuisine that perfectly reflected the culinary treasures the region had to offer.

Quesabirria, the size of dinner plates, stuffed to the brim with shredded beef and melted cheese.

Head-on shrimp seasoned and grilled to perfection.

And perhaps most unexpected, Mexican sushi—a regional fusion that somehow manages to sound improbable and taste fantastic at the same time.

Like much of California, it represented the blending of traditions, cultures, and ideas into something uniquely local.

Looking Ahead

Day One wasn't originally intended to be a major validation day for AAMRadar™.

Those visits would come later.

The stakeholder conversations were still ahead. The infrastructure discussions were just beginning. Yet by the end of the day, an important theme had already emerged.

California's story isn't simply about innovation.

It's about how innovation is driven by, history, culture, and community.

A driverless vehicle navigating city traffic. A century-old mansion built on legend and mystery. Meals that blended traditions from multiple cultures into something entirely its own. Three very different experiences, all within a single day.

As the airport visits began over the following days, I would find that same theme appearing again and again: the future is rarely built by replacing what came before. More often, it's built by finding ways to connect the past, present, and future into something new that works by being grounded in what came before.