Miami, Florida
Miami is one of the few blessed cities in United States that has a year around mild climate and access to miles and miles of sandy beaches. If you are looking for a city that can offer unstoppable entertainment, innumerable recreational activities and a chance to be among the richest partylovers, then there is nothing better than Miami.
Miami is the biggest city in the South Florida metro area, which is also known as the Miami metropolitan area. The neighboring cities of Miami are Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach, a region popularly known as Gold Coast. The city is unlike any city in United States, with a strong Cuban influence on the culture. Miami is a major center for finance, media, commerce, entertainment and international trade.
The city is also known as the "Cruise Capital of the World" with some of the most luxurious cruise liners making port at the Port of Miami, along with innumerable other luxury Yachts owned by multibillionaires who call Miami their home or a place to spend their weekend. Miami is listed among the world's richest and cleanest cities and has the distinction of being the fifth richest city in the world in terms of purchasing power.
Miami is one of the most popular vacation destinations in United States and one of the few cities that can be called as a full time party place. It is well known for tis pristine and beautiful beaches including the popular South beach, unquestionably trendy nightlife, the picturesque Art Deco district, Little Havana and Calle Ocho. If it is not the beaches and nightlife that attract people, then it is the numerous business conventions and international events that attract people from all over the world.
Miami History
Miami and the Miami Metropolitan area have had a very rich history and have played major roles in the lives of the Native Americans. The region where Miami is now situated was once occupied by the tribe Tequestas which have inhabited this region for more than a thousand years. The Miami area is also called by the name "Biscayne Bay Country", mostly in the yearly years of its growth. The region has had a rich flora and fauna, until it was recognized as one of the best construction sites in Florida.
The indications of the earliest settlements in the Miami and the Miami metropolitian region show that the first settlements arrived here more than 10,000 years ago approximately. The first inahbitants took shelter on the banks of the Miami River. The community of native Indian Americans prospered in a region which was abundant with deer, fowl and bears, leading to settlements expanding on the northern banks of the Miami River. These settlements have also been known to have created the historical Miami Circle structure.
When the first Europeans arrived in the region, the area of Miami and the Miami Metropolitan area was under the control of the Tequesta people. The Tequesta were involved in gathering of food by hunting, fishing and other types of scavenging, but did not practice agriculture. The first person to see Miami was Juan Ponce de Leon. In 1566 Pedro Menendez de Aviles along with his men made the first landing of Europeans in Miami and contacted the settlement of the Tequesta to seek information about his missing son. With the Europeans came diseases such as small pox which the Tequesta people were fend to defend for themselves. Small pox coupled with wars with other competing tribes greatly reduced their numbers, which forced them to request the Cubans to settle in Miami. The illnesses contracted by the Spanish struck the Indians and most of them died and in 1743 the first successful fort and church in Miami was built by the Spanish.
However it was not until the 18th century that permanent white people began settling in Miami and they began cultivating plantations such as sugarcane, maize, banana and other tropical fruits. During this period, the region suffered the worse American Indian war known as the Second Seminole War that the area had ever witnessed before. In 1844, they are now known as the Miami metropolitan area after Miami became the county seat with just 94 permanent residents.
Miami gained popularity after the Great Freeze that hit Florida in 1894 when the entire citrus crop of Florida was devastated by cold waves. Crops by woman named Julia Tuttle in an enormous citrus plantation survived the bad weather and were the only citrus crop in the markets of Florida that year. Tuttle persuaded the rail road magnate to expand a rail line to Miami and began the development of Miami. Real Estate activity in the Biscayne Bay area began to heat up with the rail road construction picking speed. The city of Miami received its name from the River Miami on July 28, 1896 and at that time only had 500 permanent residents.
By 1920s that region experienced heavy growth because of increased migration of people and also the law that allowed gambling in the region. Many high rise building in Miami were built in the 1930s and are many are still standing iconic landmarks of the city. During the world war two Miami witnessed heavy growth of military installations and facilities because of the strategic location of Miami, who are still present in Miami. It was only in the 1980s that Miami started becoming popular as a global city because of increased illegal cocaine shipments from Peru, Bolivia and Colombia. It today plays a major role in the economic stability of the entire county.
About Miami, Florida
In the past decade the city of Miami has seen resurgence in the overall development that has brought sophistication along with culture to one of the most naturally beautiful destinations in the world. The city of Miami is located on the Atlantic coast in the southeastern part of the state of Florida and plays a very important financial role for the State and the Country. Miami is also the County seat of the Miami-Dade County.
Miami is the 42nd largest city in United States with a population of four hundred thousand people. It is also the city with the smallest land area occupied by any metropolitan area. The Miami metropolitan area is the most populated metropolis in the southeastern part of United States and the seventh most populated in United States with an estimated population of 5.5 million. The population of Miami is a mixture of many diverse communities with the population coming from regions such as Latin America, Europe, Canada, Asia and the Caribbean.
Miami is one of the most important financial districts of America. Major centers of finance, commerce and the presence of a strong business community gives Miami the status enjoyed by cities such as New York, Sacramento and Dallas. Miami ranks itself as the 11th in United States in terms of GDP and 20th worldwide. There are numerous large companies that are situated in Miami or in and around the Miami metropolitan area. Bacardi, Alienware, Perry Ellis International, U. S. Century Bank and many others. Many companies such as Microsoft, Exxon, AIG, Cisco, Oracle, Sony, Wal-Mart, etc. with operations in Latin America use Miami as their Latin headquarters because of the close proximity of the city to Latin America.
Apart from the distinction of Miami as a strong financial center and an yearlong party destination, Miami is also a place for numerous television production centers of both English and Spanish. The headquarters of TeleFutura, Telemundo and Univision are all based in Miami along with their production studios. Apart from the Latin television production centers, Miami is also home to Latin music labels such as Universal Music Latin Entertainment and Sony Music Latin. Miami is also a popular destination for movie producers who flock to Miami to get their movies shot. Movies such as Scarfacem The Godfater, Up In the Air, and many other television series are based on Miami.
Miami is also home to the world's largest cruise sea port, the Port of Miami which is among the busiest ports on America with thousands of cruise and cargo ships departing from here each year to various parts of the world and is also the largest port between United States and Latin America. The number of international banks in Miami is equal in concentration to that of any of the business districts.
Tourism is one of the most attractive industries in Miami with more than 38 million visitors making their way every year to enjoy the legendary night life of Miami or attend many of the conventions, business meetings, events or festivals. The historic region of South Beach made popular by numerous television shows is world renowned for its beaches, nightclubs, shopping and historic building with art deco. The city is also an year round hot spot for various amateur and professional level sporting events that gives people from all over the world another reason to visit this incredible city.
About Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami is the county seat of the Miami-Dade County in Florida and is the most populated county in Florida and the 8th most populated county in Untied States. It is also the most developed and urbanized counties in Florida. The Miami-Dade County is also the third largest county according to land size in Florida with more than 1,946 square miles. The population of Miami-Dade County inhabits more than half of the population of South Florida Metropolitan area. Miami is the most populated city in the County with an estimated half a million population.
The Miami-Dade County is home to many unincorporated areas and more than 35 incorporated cities. The Miami Dade County is also one of the most agriculturally important counties of Florida with the agriculturally rich areas such as the Homestead and Redland. Redland occupies more than one third of the Miami-Dade County's inhabited area for mostly agricultural purposes. The area of Redland is sparsely populated as opposed to the more densely populated cities such as Miami.
The first settlers in the Miami-Dade County are approximated to have settled 10,000 years ago by unknown Native American settlers near the northern banks of Miami Rover. When the first European settlers arrived in the 16th century, the people of Teqesta were reported to inhabit the whole region and beyond.
The Miami Dade County is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by numerous barrier isles, one of which is the South Beach and the famous Art Deco District that demand the title of party capital of America. The county consists of the Biscayne National Park, part of the Everglades National Park and a part of the Big Cypress National Preserve, giving visitors more reasons to visit the best county in Florida.