Tourist information -
San Diego
San Diego is a city in the southwest corner of California and seat of San Diego County. It is the second largest city in California (after Los Angeles) and the sixth largest in the United States. Known for its superb climate and recreational attractions, San Diego also has one of the largest concentrations of military personnel in the nation. The city is located on San Diego Bay, one of the finest natural harbors in the world. Along its shores is the principal West Coast base of operations for the United States Navy and a busy commercial port.
The Pacific Ocean tempers the local climate. The summers are relatively cool and the winters are warm in comparison to other locales at the same general latitude. In fact, a national magazine once called San Diego "the only area in the United States with perfect weather." Annual precipitation averages just 250 mm (10 in), with most of it falling from November through March. In January temperatures average a high of 19° C (66° F) and a low of 9° C (49° F); in July the highs average 24° C (76° F) and lows 19° C (66° F).
The city takes its name from the nearby bay, named by Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno in 1602 in honor of a 15th-century Franciscan, San Diego de Alcalá (Saint Didacus). In 1769 a presidio (military fort) and mission were established, the first Spanish settlement in what was to become California. |
