Los Angeles is the largest City in California and the second largest in the United States. It is classed as a megacity, as outside the city bounds the county spans for miles. The City has a population of 3.8 million while outside the City the count goes up to an incredible 14.8 million. Los Angeles is therefore divided into five-county metropolitan areas, the glamour of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, the Sunset Boulevard, stunning canyons and the famous beaches have added to Los Angeles's reputation as a California paradise, promoted in such television series as ‘Baywatch’. Many names have been attributed to the City such as ‘Tinsel Town’, referring Hollywood and its movie industry or ‘City of Angles’ as it was founded by Spanish governor Felipe de Neve as El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles (The Town of the Queen of the Angels.)
Los Angeles was built upon the Pacific Ring of Fire, which means it suffer from earthquakes. This geologic location has produced numerous faults, the instability of which causes an estimated 10,000 earthquakes every year. On the boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate is the San Andreas Faults. Massive earthquakes to have haunted the Los Angeles area including the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Most earthquakes register low on the rickter scale, however the location of Los Angeles mean it is always under threat from these major fault lines. The most recent earthquake was in March 16, 2010 and scaled 4.4. However this is not the only danger facing the city, tsunamis are a constant reminder of Los Angeles geological vulnerability.
Los Angeles is diverse City, it has one of the largest Hispanic populations in the United States, a large Asian community, and sizable populations consisting of nearly every ethnic background in the world. Los Angeles is a hub of international trade and finance, manufacturing, tourism and fashion for much of the Western United States. It is also, and probably most famous for being the film, television, radio and recording capital of the United States.
Like most American Cities, Los Angeles has an affinity with a variety of sports. Home to Dodgers (Baseball), the Kings (Hockey), the Clippers and more famous Lakers (Basketball). Oddly it is the largest City in the United State without an NFL team. Sport form part of the Cities nation identity. Also there is a huge surfing culture in Los Angeles, with miles of white sandy beaches in which to catch great breaks.From Venice beach for beginners to Hermosa Beach for the seasoned surfer. There are alway surf camps to be found around the region. Together with experienced, qualified and friendly staff you can learn everything from first aid to how to hang five.