Los Angeles started out as a small farming town in an area inhabited by friendly Native American Indians. Under the rule of the Spanish King, a little town was founded in 1781 for the Spanish soldiers guarding this far-off territory of Spain. In 1821 Mexico declared independence from Spain and many former Spanish explorers and former soldiers along with new arrivals from the East Coast and Europe came and settled in Southern California. Most of them lived in newly setup ranches and traded with people to the North, East and South. In 1846 the Mexican American War began and the United States troops took and then established the town of Los Angeles the following year.

Los Angeles, nowadays the second largest city in the United States after New York City, is known for its Mediterranean climate, Mexican influence on architecture, the astonishing nature surrounding the city, and its Hollywood stars. This huge multicultural city, inhabiting around 4 million souls is also home to the largest Mexican, Korean, Salvadoran, and Guatemalan populations outside of those countries. Los Angeles has grown enormously since the late 19th century.

Half a century of movie making has created the glamorous image of Los Angeles around the world. The city, with its palm trees, beaches, and swimming pools, has been idealized as the ultimate "American Dream" for millions in the United States and abroad. To balance this out a bit, you could also find LA very big, overwhelming, and hard to get to know. But we agree with someone who wrote "If you're not prepared to embrace the dream, you'll doubtless find it filthy, irritating, frightening or just plain dumb." We say, checkout Los Angeles for yourself and start using your imagination!

Los Angeles Facts:

• Number of inhabitants of Los Angeles: Aprox. 4,000,000.
• Number of inhabitants of "Greater Los Angeles Area": Aprox. 20,000,000.
• The Greater Los Angeles Area consists of five Counties: Los Angeles, Riverside, Ventura, Orange and San Bernardino.
• Number of visitors each year: Aprox. 25,000,000.
• Los Angeles is also known as The City of Angels
• Average month with most rainfall: February (95 mm)
• Average month with highest temperatures: August (29C / 85F)
• State: California or The Golden State.

Los Angeles is the second largest city of the US (behind NYC). West Hollywood, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, and some other famous areas are actually separate cities, with their own city halls, mayors, police forces and regulations. Los Angeles is a city you have to get to know. And you need to be a bit of a dreamer to really see, understand, and appreciate its beauty, diversity, and attractions.