California is the most diverse state in the nation, home to nearly 40 million people. The state’s capital is Sacramento, which is only the sixth-largest city after California’s top cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco.
Los Angeles is the City of Dreams, the City of Angels, a city blessed and cursed with a glorious dream and façade of hopes. Los Angeles is a sprawling Southern California city and the center of the nation’s film and television industry. Near its iconic Hollywood sign, studios such as Paramount Pictures, Universal and Warner Brothers offer behind-the-scenes tours. On Hollywood Boulevard, TCL Chinese Theatre displays celebrities’ hand- and footprints, the Walk of Fame honors thousands of luminaries and vendors sell maps to stars’ homes. The first stars were officially revealed in the early 1960s, and today there are more than 2,600 dotting Hollywood Blvd.
Just 118 miles from Downtown Los Angeles is the birthplace of California, Old Town San Diego. San Diego was the first established European settlement in the state, dating back to 1769. San Diego is a city known for its beaches, parks, and warm climate. Immense Balboa Park is the site of the renowned San Diego Zoo, as well as numerous art galleries, artist studios, museums, and gardens. While in California, aboard a plan to
San Jose, which is a large city, surrounded by rolling hills in Silicon Valley, a major technology hub in California’s Bay Area. Architectural landmarks, from the 1883 Italianate-style Oddfellows building to Spanish Colonial Revival structures, make up the downtown historic district. The downtown area is also home to the Tech Museum of Innovation, devoted to the exploration of science and technology. Just a drive away is the Greater Bay Area that includes San Francisco and Berkeley. San Francisco is famous for its Golden Gate Bridge, steep streets, and Alcatraz.