Florida means “Feast of Flowers” in Spanish. It was admitted to the United States as a State on March 3, 1845 (27th State)
Population: Population: 19,057,542 (2011), ranked 4[SUP]th[/SUP] in U.S. behind California, Texas and New York. Three most populated cities: 1. Jacksonville 827,908. 2. Miami 408, 750. Tampa 346,037. Florida population consists of 57.9% white, 15.2% African American, 22.5% Latino and other ethnic groups.
Nature: Located on the bank of the Gulf of Mexico, Florida has a spring-like winter which attracts a large number of people during the winter. Wealthy families buy homes in Florida for their winter stay only to escape the cold winter in their own towns and come to Florida.
The world’s deepest freshwater spring is Wakulla Springs near Tallahassee.
Saint Augustine city of Florida is the oldest European settlement in North America.
There are more than 30,000 lakes and over 1000 golf courses located in Florida.
Food: Seafood is prevalent and popular in Florida.
Tourism: With 87.3 million visitors in 2011 (a record number); Florida is one of the top travel destinations in the world. In general, families with little kids prefer visiting Orlando amusement parks, such as Islands of Adventure, SeaWorld, Universal Studios, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and similar places. The youth, however, prefers Miami. Miami has very nice beaches, night clubs, and is famous with its basketball team.
**Science: **Kennedy Space Center is a significant NASA branch located on Merritt Island, Florida. This space center has lunched many shuttles to the space including Apollo 15 Spaceship, the fourth spaceship to land on the moon.
**Military: **Florida hosts Macdill Air Force base, which is home to the United States Central command. The United States Central Command’s area of responsibilities are 20 countries and the followings: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tajikist Turkmenistan, U.A.E., Uzbekistan, Yemen.
Please visit United States Central Command website for more information: (http://www.centcom.mil/ur) or visit us on facebook page
