Ch. 18 Hawaii

Hawaii is near the middle of the Pacific Ocean in between Asia and North America. Honolulu, the state capital of Hawaii, is about 2400 miles from San Francisco, which is about a little more than a 5 hour flight from San Francisco. Hawaii is made up of 8 main islands (Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Maui, Kahoolawe, and Hawaii). The state capital of Honolulu is found on Oahu.

About the only things Monterey, California and Hawaii have in common are they both lie in the Pacific Ocean and tourism is relevant in both places. The tourist attractions are obviously a lot different though since Hawaii is a tropical place, the weather is much warmer, and it is made up of multiple islands. An estimated 7.4 million people visit Hawaii every year!

Map of Hawaii and the South Pacific

References:

1. 1. Birdsall, Stephen S., Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada (7th Edition)

2. http://www.maps-pacific.com/graphics/Pacific-Ocean-Map.gif (picture) 

Ch. 16 The North Pacific Coast

The land of the North Pacific Coast is filled with all types of trees. Redwoods, Douglas fir, hemlock, red cedar, Sitka spruce, and more. Not only are these trees important to the environment, but they also play an important role in the North Pacific Coast's economy.

Redwood trees are also common in California, around San Francisco and even near Monterey around Big Sur, and especially Santa Cruz. Redwood trees are the world's tallest trees, with some individual trees being measured in excess of 360 feet! Some trees can live as long as 2000 years. Here are a few pictures:

Redwood trees in Big Sur

Redwood trees in Santa Cruz

References:

1. http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/redwoods.html (picture)

2. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3396/3475560300_2f93fbfa18.jpg (picture)

Ch. 15 California

The climate in Monterey, California is very unique. Monterey has a Mediterranean climate with precipitation primarily common during the winter months, and one that has mild winters and hot summers. Mediterranean climates are found on the west coasts of many continents. In California, the entire coast from San Diego all the way up past San Francisco represent the only zone of Mediterranean climate in North America.

From my experience, Monterey a lot of times is cloudy and overcast, especially during the Fall and Winter. It usually clears up later on in the day, if at all. Living there for most of my life, I felt like you could have the weather of all four seasons in one day! It will be raining in the morning, overcast in the afternoon, sunny in the late afternoon, and frigid at night.

Because of Monterey's unique climate, a lot of agriculture is grown there or near there. Monterey's climate is perfect for growing grapes, as a result there are plenty of wineries around the area. Lettuce and many other fruits and vegetables are grown in nearby Salinas, as well as artichokes grown in Castroville, and garlic in Gilroy.

I might be a little biased since I'm from there, but I think Monterey's climate is perfect. It's not too cold and it's not too hot.

Areas with Mediterranean climate

Wine vineyards around Monterey

References:

1. Birdsall, Stephen S., Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada (7th Edition)

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Medclim.png (pic)

3. http://wine.appellationamerica.com/maps/Monterey.jpg (pic) 

Ch. 14 The Southwest Border Area: Tricultural Development

Monterey is just on the outskirts of the Southwest Border Area. According to the map in Chapter 14, it is in the transitional area.

Like the Southwest Border Area, Monterey has a high Hispanic population. In 2010, the Monterey County had a population of 415,057. A little more than half of that population was Hispanic or Latino at 230,003. The majority of the Hispanic population resided in Salinas with a population of 112,799. Just in the city of Monterey alone, there was only 3,817 Hispanics or Latinos.

Monterey in the red:

References:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterey_County,_California#2010

2. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5b/Map_of_California_highlighting_Monterey_County.svg/250px-Map_of_California_highlighting_Monterey_County.svg.png (pic)

Ch. 13 The Empty Interior

A small section of the chapter mentions tourism in the Empty Interior. One of the places they mention is Las Vegas, Nevada. Las Vegas was once just a desert town and now is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. According to the book, between 1990 and 2000, Las Vegas grew 83.3 percent. 

Similar to Las Vegas, tourism is very significant to Monterey's economy. Tourism brings in a lot of revenue to Monterey. Places like the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Cannery Row, and the various golf courses in Pebble Beach attract a lot of tourists to the area. Although Monterey does not bring in as much money as Las Vegas when it comes to tourism, it still plays a vital role in Monterey's economy.

Pebble Beach

Monterey Bay Aquarium

References:
1.  Birdsall, Stephen S., Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada (7th Edition)
2. http://thbexclusive.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/pebble-beach-golf.jpg (picture)
3. http://www.zinkwazi.com/blog/images/20090414003448__dsc4464-editblog.jpg (picture) 

Ch. 12 The Great Plains and Prairies

A small section of Chapter 12 deals with the "Grasslands Literature." A lot of the novels mentioned in the chapter described the region and environment of the Great Plains. Some of the novels that had excerpts in the chapter were Main-Traveled Roads, Giants in the Earth, Old Jules, My Antonia, and The Grapes of Wrath.

I thought The Grapes of Wrath was significant because the author of that novel is John Steinbeck who was born and raised in the Monterey County, in the city of Salinas. The Grapes of Wrath was set in Oklahoma (part of The Great Plains and Prairies) during the Great Depression. The novel follows the Joads, a family of poor sharecroppers driven from their farm in Oklahoma, to California due to the drought. Steinbeck wrote many other great pieces of literature including Of Mice and Men and Cannery Row, both of which were set in the Monterey County.

References:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grapes_of_Wrath
2. http://www.filmsquish.com/guts/files/images/26465.JPG (picture)

Ch. 11 The Agricultural Core

"Clarksville, Iowa", the small case study at the end of Chapter 11 is very similar to a small town near Monterey called Spreckels. Spreckels is located in the Monterey County and is 3 miles south of Salinas. This town reminds me of Clarksville, Iowa because when I pass it on my way home to Monterey, it always seems so empty and deserted. Like Clarksville, Spreckels' downtown is only a few blocks long and anywhere in town is less than a 10-15 minute walk. Spreckels has a total area of 0.122 square miles and a population of 673 in 2010. Spreckels is surrounded on all sides by agricultural fields that begin immediately where the streets start and end.

Here is a picture of downtown Spreckels, which is similar to the one of Clarksville in Chapter 11:

References:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spreckels,_California

2. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rudebigdog/6027862444/?map=1 (picture)

Ch. 10 The Southern Coastlands

One of the major states in the Southern Coastlands is Florida. Florida is #1 in production of citrus fruits, and second behind them is California. California and Arizona are the only other states outside of the Southern Coastland region that grow large quantites of citrus fruits. California is the only state that exceeds Florida in the production of lemons and navel oranges.

Part of the reason why Florida is the leader of citrus fruit production is because of the length of the grow season in the Southern Coastlands. The growing season lasts around 9-10 months. In addition to the long growing season, there is enough precipitation for the citrus fruit crops to flourish. Only Hawaii, southwestern Arizona, and SoCal benefit from a long growing season like the Southern Coastlands.

References:
1. Birdsall, Stephen S., Regional Landscapes of the United States and Canada (7th Edition)

Ch. 9 The Changing South

Like the South, religion is important in Monterey. Although there aren't many Pentocostal, Methodist, Episcopal, or Baptist churches like in the South. The predominant religion in Monterey is Catholic. Growing up, religion was very important to my family and I attended church regularly every Sunday. Like the book states, people were religious and went to church because of hardship, isolation, and so on. Unlike in the South, people aren't very expressive with their emotions in Monterey, that is mostly due to the different religions. Although religions and churches are different in Monterey and the South, we all go for the same reason, which is faith and something to believe in.

A picture of the church I used to attend:

References:

1. http://missionbandits.blogspot.com/2011/03/monterey-presidio.html (picture)

Ch. 8 Appalachia and the Ozarks

The topography of Appalachia and the Ozarks is hilly and irregular with many mountains and valleys. That type of topography reminds me of an area in Monterey known as Big Sur in the Santa Lucia Mountains. The Santa Lucia Mountains run from Monterey southeast for a little over 100 miles to San Luis Obispo. The Santa Lucia Mountains are a part of the Pacific Coast Ranges.

Big Sur is a very popular tourist destination along the scenic route of Highway 1. The Cone Peak in Big Sur is the highest coastal mountain in the contiguous 48 states at almost 5,200 feet (nearly a mile) above sea level. Here are some pictures:

References:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Lucia_Range

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Sur

3. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Big_Sur_June_2008.jpg (picture)

4. http://www.mccullagh.org/db9/d30-26/big-sur-ocean-sunset-9.jpg (picture)

Ch. 7 The Bypassed East

Like the Bypassed East, the fishing industry played an important role in Monterey. In the late 19th century, the fishing industry was very beneficial to Monterey's economy as well as one of the most profitable. Italian and Chinese immigrants were the pioneers of the industry which started in Pacfic Grove, a small town right next to Monterey. The industry was very successful and did very well, until the early 1940s when the area became overfished, leading to scarce amounts of fish. Similar to the Bypassed East, it raised many concerns, and it prompted Monterey to create the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

References:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterey_Peninsula#Fishing_Industry
2. http://www.carmel.com/cannery-row-monterey/gifs/cannery-row-pic1.jpg (picture)

Ch. 5 The North American Manufacturing Core

Monterey, California is unfortunately not a part of the North American Manufacturing Core. The Manufacturing Core resides in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, and parts of Virginia and West Virginia.

Chapter 5 talks mainly of the Manufacturing Core, but does mention that manufacturing is found west of the Mississippi River such as California's Silicon Valley, which is about an hour and a half from Monterey. Silicon Valley plays a big role in the technology world. It is home to many of the world's biggest technology corporations like Apple, Adobe Systems, Google, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, and many more.

Silicon Valley got its name from the large number of silicon chip manufacturers that were present there. Many parts of a computer, like the motherboard and a lot of its components contained silicon.

Although it doesn't go into detail in Chapter 5, the manufacturing that occurs in Silicon Valley is comparable to the Manufacturing Core. Different things are being manufactured like iron and steel in the Manufacturing Core, and technological devices in Silicon Valley, but it is all for the same reason. Things are being produced to create revenue for the companies and to cater to what the consumers want.

Ch. 4 Megalopolis

The city of Monterey itself is not part of a Megalopolis, but the nearest one would be San Francisco, which is 2 hours north of Monterey. That Megalopolis consists of the cities of San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento, San Jose, Stockton, Modesto, Fresno, and Reno.

San Francisco is considered a Megalopolis because of its proximity to the ocean; its many harbors; the many major freeways including the 101, 880, and 280; its large population of 12.7 million people in that region, and much more.

Ch. 3 Foundations of Human Activity

Before the European settlement of Monterey, the Ohlone tribe were the original inhabitants. Most notably, it was the Rumsien people who inhabited Monterey. The fish, wildlife, and other natural resources are what attracted the Rumsiens to Monterey.

European Settlement
In 1602, Sebastian Vizcaino of Spain was the first to set foot on Monterey. But Father Junipero Serra and Gaspar de Portola were the ones who established it in 1770.

Population and Demographics
The population density of Monterey measured in people per square mile by county is 79.6 to 159.9.

The racial makeup of Monterey is 78.3% White, 2.8% African American, 7.9% Asian, 0.5% Native American, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 5% from other races, and 5.1% from two or more races.

The predominant religion in Monterey is Catholic.

Ch. 2 Geographic Patterns of the Physical Environment

Monterey belongs in the Pacific Mountains and Valleys physiographic region. Monterey's climate is Mediterranean with the warmest month mean under 71.6°F. From my experience, Monterey is mostly cold and very foggy at times, especially in the morning. The summer is always the warmest, average temperature is about 65°-75°F. When it's warm, many people like to go to the beach, but don't expect the water to be warm, it's cold and it's almost always windy at the beach!

Monterey's vegetation region is: cold needleleaf forest and coastal forest. And their soil type is Highland. There are no mineral fuels or metallic minerals found in Monterey.

Ch. 1 - Regions and Themes

In the west region of the United States you will find the state of California. In the state of California is the small city of Monterey. It is 2 hours south of San Francisco and about 5 hours north of Los Angeles. Monterey has a land area of about 8.5 square miles, and as of 2010, has a population of about 27,810.