Exploring Orange County, California
♫ Thursday, January 20th, 2011A century ago Orange County lived up to its name. This dry, sunny land, which stretches from the Santa Ana Mountains to the beautiful Pacific coastline, was indeed scattered with orange orchards and farms. Today, the region is a mass of freeways and houses in the suburbs. Visitors to the county can explore a wide range of museums, sites of historical interest, and entertainment complexes.
In the mid-1950s, the roads leading to the county’s theme parks still passed through extensive orange groves. At that time, Disneyland was attracting its first enthusiastic crowds, and a local boy called Richard Nixon had become Vice President of the US. Today, orange groves have given way to urban development and fruit crate labels have become collectors’ items. More than two million people live here, enjoying perennial sunshine and a high standard of living.
The Orange County coast is lined with wide, sandy beaches, and design a legendary haunt surfing, marina, and the artists’ area. In the wealthy seaside town, few visitors can resist the temptation to find a clifftop bar and watch the sunset.
Inland lies a variety of cultural sights. Mission San Juan Capistrano, founded in 1776, is a reminder of the days of the Spanish Franciscan settlers. The Bowers Museum of Cultural Art in Santa Ana houses superb examples of the art of indigenous peoples from all around the world. At Yorba Linda, the impressive. Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace commemorates the life of Orange County’s most famous son.
Orange County is the entertainment capital of California. For visitors seeking family fun and roller-coaster thrills, there are the homey Knott’s Berry Farm, America’s oldest theme park, and the fantasy kingdom of Disneyland, which is, as the saying goes, “the most famous people-trap ever built by a mouse.” With its year round sunny skies, gorgeous beaches and trees lined with palm trees, Orange County is one of the trendiest and most gorgeous locations to live the glamorous high life. You would expect the residents of Orange County to jet around in the most expensive of luxury cars but this isn’t always the case.
