Los Angeles

Los Angeles is one of the most well know cities in the entire world. Encompassing over 469 square miles, Los Angeles has a population of almost 4 million, with the Greater Los Angeles Area topping about 18 million people making it one of the most populated metropolitan areas in the world. Los Angeles was founded in the late 1700s by a Spanish governor and became part of Mexico in 1821. After the Mexican-American war in 1848, Los Angeles and the rest of California became part of the United States. Two years later California became an official state of the United States. Los Angeles’s strong economy, international trade, entertainment, culture, educational facilities, and research institutions have made the “City of Angles” as it has become known into one of the most power and influential cities in the world.

Ask most individuals throughout the world about Los Angeles and one of the first facts that will immerge is that Los Angeles contains Hollywood. Home of the modern cinema and television industries, Hollywood is globally recognized as the epicenter housing more writers, directors, filmmakers and artists than any other city in the history of the world.

Performing arts plays a major role in the cultural identity of Los Angeles. Each year there are more than 1,100 theatrical productions with dozens of openings happening each week. Patrons of the performing arts can, on any given night, locate various award winning performances at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles Philharmonic or the Los Angeles Music Center. One of the most well known and prominent awards ceremonies, The Academy Awards, is held in Los Angeles on an annual basis at the Dolby Theatre.

Los Angeles is home to professional sports teams from Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, Women’s National Basketball Association, Major League Soccer and possibly soon the National Football League. Los Angeles is also home to the US Trojans and the UCLA Bruins which are Division 1 NCAA schools.

Los Angeles has also hosted the Olympic Games on two occasions, in 1932 and in 1982.

Los Angeles contains over 800 museums and art galleries making it one of the most art friendly cities in the world.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana municipal area is the third largest economic center in the world, mainly driven by international trade, entertainment, aerospace, petroleum, fashion, apparel, tourism, and technology. Los Angeles is the largest manufacturing center in the United States containing one of the busiest ports in the world. In 2010 Los Angeles had a gross metropolitan product of over $700 billion, making it one of the largest economic centers in the world.

Known for some of the best weather in the United States, Los Angeles has an annual temperature of 66º F (19º C) during the day and 57º F (14º C) at night. Temperatures rarely exceed 90º F (32º C) and the city sees more than 3,000 hours of sunshine a year, which averages out to about 8.2 hours of beautiful sunshine per day.