Los Angeles

An oftened made fun of, ridiculed, and stereotyped city. In reality, it's a great city. I'm a native Angeleno and I think I would know my city. All that makes LA a fantastic city: 1. Largest city on the West Coast and in California (by far) with a population of 4.1 million according to wikipedia. 2. One of the ten alpha world cities ranked by the GaWC and is the most powerful city and richest city on the West Coast. 3. Probably has the most diverse geographic landscape in the country with mountains, beaches, palm trees, deserts, forests, etc. Where else can one lay out on the beach and in the next hour be hiking in the mountains? 4. One of the most ethnically diverse cities in the world, up there with New York City, London, and Toronto. 5. A world class city with plenty of culture- a major center of film, tv, music, science, art, fashion, theater, pop-culture, celebrities, etc. that plays a large role in influencing American culture. 6. A city of extremes from the filthy rich Bel-Air to the dirt-poor Skid Row, all of which are living in the same city. 7. Each community is like its own world in that all of them are so different. Beverly Hills - glamour. Hollywood - young, creative, artsy. Malibu - laid back yet still high maintenance. LA being a sprawling and divided city creates for an extremely diverse environment with many different types of people. 8. Third safest big city in the United States after New York City and San Jose. Los Angeles is mistakenly labeled as the gangster capital of the world. While we certainly have probably the most gangs in our metro area, most of them are located in Compton, NOT part of the City of Los Angeles so it doesn't count. Besides, places like Detroit, Philadelphia, and St. Louis (recently named the most dangerous city in the US) have higher crime rates. LA's crimte rate has been declining over the past couple of years. 9. Smog - yes there is LOTS of smog here. However all cities have smog. Sometimes it is smoggy enough here to fully obstruct the mountains. Sometimes we have crystal clear skies (this week has been very clear). 10. A growing Downtown. Will be much improved in ten years. 11. A growing public transportation system. It only took about twenty years for us to have our current public transit system. Summary: Los Angeles is a dirty and superficial city. It is actually one of the safest big cities in the US and is the second wealthiest in the US behind New York City. Los Angeles County has the highest number of millionaires in this country. LA is both ugly and beautiful. West Los Angeles (Bel-Air, Beverly Hills, Brentwood, Pacific Palisades) is beautiful while East Los Angeles (Highland Park, Lincoln Park, Boyle Heights) is rather ugly. For the most part, LA is not too architecturally beautiful but we do have some great buildings in Downtown and West Los Angeles has some of the most impressive suburban private architecture. LA is a very beautiful city once you take in account its geographic location. LA is a diverse, multi-cultured, global, hip, and trendy city. It's a fascinating place unlike no other. It has great weather. It is located in close proximity to other major destinations (San Diego, Santa Barbara, Las Vegas, Big Bear). It's a multi-facted city. It's not the best city but certainly not the worst.