Los Angeles/Long Beach Basics

Los Angeles is the largest city on the west coast of the United States, with a population of over 3.8 million. It is the center of a region whose population is just under 13 million residents. It is also a giant cultural Xerox machine, helping to define the cultural tastes for the country and the world.

The economy of Los Angeles is driven by international trade, entertainment, aerospace, technology, petroleum, fashion, apparel, and tourism. Los Angeles is also the largest manufacturing center in the United States. The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach comprise the most significant port in North America, vital to trade within the Pacific Rim.

Los Angeles has a pleasant year-round Mediterranean climate, with cool temperate winters and hot but dry summers. Humidity levels are generally low. The climate in the Los Angeles area varies dramatically over short geographical distances, due to the area's topography.

Los Angeles has a pleasant year-round Mediterranean climate, with cool temperate winters and hot but dry summers. Spring and fall can be the most pleasant months of the year, with generally clear days with little fog. Angelenos often complain about "June gloom," a phenomenon in which a persistent marine layer fails to burn off during the day, making for cool overall temperatures.

The climate in the Los Angeles area varies dramatically over short geographical distances, due to the area's topography; you can see the differences when you look at the temperature charts below.

Rainfall is concentrated in the cooler half of the year, particularly during November through February. Los Angeles averages only 15 inches of rain each year.

In Los Angeles, you can download your Kindle newspaper and magazine subscriptions, as well as books and selected blogs, through AT&T's 3-G coverage in the city.

Look for the following local festivals, holidays and events taking place in the Los Angeles area in 2012:

• Rose Parade, January 2. The City of Pasadena's New Year's day extravaganza.


• Rose Bowl Game, January 2. The Dean of college bowl games, this year featuring the No. 10 BCS ranked Wisconsin Badgers and the No. 5 BCS ranked Oregon Ducks.


• Racing at Santa Anita, January 1 to April 22. (The racing season at Santa Anita actually begins on December 26, 2011.) The four month racing season will feature the nation's top horses, trainers and jockeys, and plenty of fun in the sun.


• Academy Awards Presentation, February 26. See the Hollywood luminary set up close and personal at the 84th annual awards show. Must get tickets to be in the crowd at the Kodak Theater at Hollywood and Highland Center in Hollywood.


• Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 13 to 15. For the motorsports enthusiast in all of us.


• Doo Dah Parade, April 28. The annual Doo Dah Parade, a spoof of the Rose Bowl Parade put on by wags and crazies in Pasadena, has been amusing bystanders for 35 years. A fun few hours in Pasadena isn't guaranteed, but close.


• Cinco de Mayo, May 5. A big thing here, if not in Mexico. Time to gorge on nachos washed down by a cerveza or two.


• The LA Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, June 22 to September 22. The season kicks off with the Playboy Jazz Festival, and ends with a concert freaturing Carrie Underwood. In the intervening days, great concerts by the LA Phil.


• Independence Day Celebrations, July 4. Fireworks, parades, BBQs, and the whole nine yards throughout the LA area.


• Festival of the Arts/Pageant of the Masters, July 7 to August 31. Taking place in the artsy berg of Laguna Beach, the 79th Annual presentation of the Pageant of the Masters is celebrated in 2012. If you've never gone, it's worth a visit.


• Orange County Fair, July 13 to August 12, in Costa Mesa. What's summer in Orange County without a visit to the fair?


• Nisei Week Japanese Festival, August 11 to 19. This nine-day festival in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo district highlights Japanese and Japanese American culture and 2012 marks its 72nd year.


• Los Angeles County Fair, August 31 to September 30, at the Fairplex in Pomona. What's summer in Los Angeles County without a visit to the fair and a fried Snickers bar? Oink!


• Thanksgiving, November 22.