California: Hollywood, Start-Ups and Arboreal Giants

A view of the downtown San Diego skyline. (Photograph by f11photo / Shutterstock.com)

Although you might not think of trees when you think of California, forestland covers 45 percent of the state. This is where you’ll find some of the largest, tallest and oldest trees in the world.
California knows how to go big in other ways too. Home to companies like Facebook, Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Google and Intel, California’s Silicon Valley employs nearly a quarter of a million information technology workers.

And California is the most populous U.S. state, with 39 million residents living between the highest and lowest points in the continental United States. California’s Mount Whitney measures 14,495 feet high and Bad Water in California’s Death Valley is 282 feet below sea level. California is also famous for its entertainment industry, centered around Hollywood. Visitors can tour film studios and visit the sets of their favorite American TV shows and movies.

Hollywood
The iconic sign on the hills is one of the most recognizable landmarks in southern California. You can drive right up to it and pose for a photo with it, as visitors often do.

(Photograph by Mark J. Terrill © AP Images)

Here’s your chance …
… to drive through a tree! The Avenue of the Giants is a highway flanked by monumental trees. You can drive through three of them, including the Chandelier Tree.

(Photograph by Alisa_Ch / Shutterstock.com)

Music, surf and sand
Don’t forget to check out California’s diverse music scene at festivals like the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival near Palm Springs, the Monterey Jazz Festival on the Central Coast, and San Francisco’s Outside Lands. Then, experience the state’s iconic surf culture at Huntington Beach (known as Surf City, USA) and enjoy many other beautiful beaches up and down the coast.

(Photograph by Marcio Jose Sanchez © AP Images)

Disneyland
A Disney-themed amusement park, Disneyland is only a short ride away from the Walt Disney film studios, where blockbuster movies like “Cinderella,” “Toy Story” and “Frozen” were produced.

(Photograph by Eqdoktor / Creative Commons)

Courtesy ShareAmerica