1. California “The Golden State“ by Andrea Zimmerl in cooperation with G. Eggenhofer

3. California is a state located in the western United States, bordering the Pacific Ocean. It is the most populous and third largest state in the U.S.

4. Capital: Sacramento

5. San Diego

6. Los Angeles (L.A.): It is a major center for producing entertainment, including motion picture, TV, and recorded music.

8. The Governor of California is Arnold Schwarzenegger Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American actor, politician, bodybuilder, and businessman, currently serving as the 38th Governor of California. He was elected on October 7th, 2003.

9. California is also a state of natural wonders: The state tree of California is the redwood. These trees can grow to be over 300 feet (90 m) tall, and the base of the tree can measure up to 22 feet (7 m) in diameter. Several parks preserve these giant redwood trees and some are over 3000 years old.

11. At Yosemite National Park you can see the country‘s highest waterfall (760m) which drops in three cascades.

13. In Death Valley lies the lowest point in North America at 282 feet (86 m) below sea level. It is the hottest and driest place in the U.S.

14. Living on the fault line The San Andreas fault (where huge plates of rock deep in the earth‘s crust meet) runs 270 miles (435 km) through west- central California.

15. When the plates move, they cause earthquakes. San Francisco suffered earthquake damage in 1989.

16. The first Europeans to settle in San Francisco were the Spanish, in 1776. The city grew rapidly due to the California gold rush starting in 1848.

18. The San Francisco cable car system …. San Francisco is one of the few American cities where you don‘t need a car to get around. There‘s very good public transport – buses, subways and the famous cable cars. It‘s a city where you can also walk around a lot.

19. If you hop on a San Francisco cable car, the first thing you do is hold on! You‘ll lose your breath going up and down those steep hills heading towards Fisherman‘s Wharf. There is a boat trip around the bay that takes you …..

20. …past the old prison, Alcatraz..

21. Famous Flashbacks! Anyone who loves a hamburger, shake,and fries can recognize the „Golden Arches“ of the largest restaurant chain in the world – McDonald‘s! The first Mc Donald‘s was a carhop barbecue restaurant in 1940 in San Bernardino, east of Los Angeles. Anyone who loves a hamburger, shake,and fries can recognize the „Golden Arches“ of the largest restaurant chain in the world – McDonald‘s! The first Mc Donald‘s was a carhop barbecue restaurant in 1940 in San Bernardino, east of Los Angeles.

22. Sources: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/usa/states/california/map.GIF http://www.renovationexperts.com/images/citypics/sacramento/sacramento-california.jpg http://www.starfieldonline.com/images/uploads/journal/San%20Diego.jpg http://www.cityreview.us/images/user/9/1094646271_show.jpg http://news.softpedia.com/images/news2/Arnold-Schwarzenegger-Seeks-Re-election-For-California-Governor-2.jpg http://www.pcimagenetwork.com/redwood/p9.jpg http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~qi/summer2001/images/yosemite/redwood3.jpg http://www.cdislands.com/photos_plants/plants6/x99021012.jpg http://homepage.mac.com/patholleran/ParkVision/Yosemite/Yo-143.jpg http://www.mikelevin.com/DeathValleyCactusLanscape800.jpg http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/01/images/san_andreas_fault.gif http://www.shropshirerocks.org/assets/userfiles/000096.jpg http://3dparks.wr.usgs.gov/3Dbayarea/images2/CoronaHeights3.jpg http://www.acm.rpi.edu/~diesel/my_pics/California04/golden%20gate%20san%20francisco.jpg http://encyclopedia.quickseek.com/images/Sf_cable_car.jpg http://www.iol.ie/~kcolfer/images/Hollywood_Sign02.jpg http://www.sixtiescity.com/Events/Images/alcatraz.jpg http://www.uso.org/Naples/images/mcdonalds-logo%5B1%5D.jpg