Los Angeles Cruise Port Guide

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles, L.A. and City of

urban sprawl, ethnic diversity, oceanfront playground and unlimited Frergy.

To understand 20th-century America or just have some fun, visit Los Angeles.

Los Angeles is a very young city; just over a century ago it was a bicultural community of American immigrants and wealthy Mexican ranchers, with a population of less than 50,000. On completion of the transcontinental railroads in the 1880s it began to grow. The old ranches were subdivided; the symbol of the city became the family-sized suburban house, set amidst the orange groves in a glorious land of sunshine. The real boom came after World War II in the mushrooming aeronautics industry. Until the recent post-Cold War military cutbacks, the industry accounted for one in four L.A.'s colorful melange of shopping malls, palm trees and swimming pools is at once bafflingly strange and startlingly familiar, thanks to the celluloid self-image that has spread all over the world. People used to deride Los Angeles as the world's garden of glitz and glamour. That judgment has given

way; Los Angeles' culture is rich and the creativity of its citizens is boundless. You can see it in the architecture, whose traditions have been identified and glorified, from Mission Revival and Art Deco to the latest in Postmodern and Deconstructionist designs. You can see it in the visual arts, painting and sculpture that have come into their own in L.A. It is also visible in a wealth of performing arts that now extend well beyond film and television. Add the good food, beaches and countless attractions and you've got the makings of a great destination.

Please Note: Guests in transit to the following cruise may check with the Tour Office on board for sightseeing options. Guests on Silversea's Pre- or Post-Cruise program may check with the Silversea Hospitality Desk at the hotel for sightseeing possibilities, dining and shopping information during their stay in Los Angeles.