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Best known for its many tourist attractions like the Walt Disney World, the SeaWorld and Universal Orlando Resort, Orlando attracts around 52 million tourists annually. Many projects are currently under construction or planned for redevelopment. As to number of hotel rooms, Orlando ranks second in the country.

The City Beautiful.

Orlando, the sixth largest city in Florida, is the county seat of Orange County, Florida. As of the year 2000, the city population was 185,951 (metropolitan area 1,644,561).

In the year 2005, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the population count rose to 213,233 (metropolitan area 1,933,255). Orlando, Florida is the main city in the Orlando-Kissimmee, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The MSA of Orlando-Kissimmee is Florida’s third largest metropolitan area behind Miami Fort Lauderdale West Palm Beach and Tampa –St. Petersburg-Clearwater. The University of Central Florida, the second largest university in Florida, is in Orlando.

Nicknamed as The City Beautiful, Orlando uses The fountain of Lake Eola is its symbol.

The History Of Orlando.

During the war against the Seminole Indian tribe in 1836, a soldier named Orlando Reeves (sometimes spelled as Rees) allegedly died in this area. A sugar miller and planter, at Spring Garden in Volusia County, his name was found carved into a tree and pioneers settlers assumed it was his gravesite and referred the area as “Orlando’s grave” and later simply “Orlando”. Simply put, his name has been immortalized in the city where all the fun begins—Orlando, Florida.

Having suffered greatly during the American Civil War, the Reconstruction Era led to the city’s incorporation in 1875. Orlando became the hub of Florida’s citrus industry in 1875 to 1895, remembered as the “Gilded Era.” Many owners were forced to give up their independent groves due to the great freeze in 1894 to 1895, thus giving their landholdings to a few citrus barons.

Orlando boomed as a popular resort during the war years between the Spanish American War and World War 1. The city hosted several sanitariums. In 1920 there was a large housing boom and with it a construction of several bungalows. But hurricanes and depression hit Florida in the late 20’s and the boom ended.

In 1965, Walt Disney built the Walt Disney World in Orlando, instead of Miami or Tampa, due to hurricane threats. The famous vacation resort ushered an explosive population and economic growth for the Orlando Metropolitan Area. Tourism soared to greater heights. Orlando ranked as one of the top vacation spots in the world.

The Climate.

Orlando has a warm and humid subtropical climate, and there are two major seasons each year. One of those seasons is hot and rainy, lasting from April until October (roughly coinciding with the Atlantic hurricane season). The other is a cooler season (November through March) that brings more moderate temperatures and less frequent rainfall. The area's warm and humid climate is caused primarily by its low elevation and its position relatively close to the Tropic of Cancer, and much of its weather is affected by the movement of the Gulf Stream.

The Culture.

An increasing number of Hispanic residents lived in the city, particularly the Puerto Rican communities. Proof of this is the abundance of Hispanic-themed restaurants and Spanish- language music in radio stations. Puerto Rican flags can be found near buildings.. The only NBA team to have a Latin Night is the Orlando Magic basketball team. An all Spanish newspaper called El Sentinel is published weekly by the Orlando Sentinel, the city’s local newspaper.

However, not all Puerto Ricans are Hispanics, There are Latinos of Cuban origin, largely refugees or children from the Cuban Revolution.

It has also African-American residents, the city being located only six miles from Eatonville. It was the first all-black town incorporated in the United States.

Arts And Entertainment.

The home and capital of pop music and mainstream music in the mid 1990s like Britney Spears, Mandy Moore, NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, as well as Creed, Trivium, From First to Last, matchbox twenty, Seven Mary Three, DJ Icey, DJ KJ of K5, DJ Baby Anne, DJ Jimmy Joslin and DJ Scotty B, Sister Hazel and Less Than Jake are from Gainesville, and superstar Tom Petty. Club Paris, the dance club formerly owned by Paris Hilton is also in downtown Orlando,

All active within the city are the hip hop music scene, metal scene, rock music scene, Latino scene and the Florida Breakbeat movement.

Also from Orlando are comedian Wayne Brady, actors Delta Burkes and Wesley Snipes. Other comedians include Darrel Hammond, Carrot Top, and Larry the Cable Guy.

Because of the numerous cinematic enterprises in the area Orlando has been called Hollywood East. Walt Disney Feature Animation operated a studio out of Disney/MGM Studios, until recently, at the Walt Disney World Resort. Primarily responsible for the films Mulan, Lilo and Stitch, and the early stages of Brother Bear, Feature Animation Florida made contributions also to other projects. Nickelodeon Studios, producer of GAK-filled game shows, no longer operates out of Universal Studios Florida. One of the most respected regional film festivals in the country, the Florida Film Festival in Maitland, attracts filmmakers worldwide.