One of this area's major attractions is the haven of leisure activities it provides to many folks living here. So if you like activities for you and/or the family, relocating to Silicon Valley is a good idea!

Because of this area's exceptionally wonderful climate, hot and dry in the summer, but close enough to mountain ranges of snow in the winter, outdoor activities abound for most people's tastes.

Let me see if I can name just a few : hiking, running, biking (road and mountain), swimming, surfing, boogie boarding, skim boarding, rock climbing, ski-ing and snowboarding, sledding, bird-watching, tennis, hunting and fishing, sailing, baseball, soccer, lacrosse, football, even cricket - and many more - but you get the picture! There's something for everyone!

To find out what's going on in the Bay Area, and much more about the different areas to visit, check out the Bay Area section of the California Travel & Tourism's site. And if you're interested in helping promote the arts - music, dance, theatre, go to the California Arts Council.

California is also home to some of the country's most beautiful parks. Walks and wildlife, bicycling and boating, rock climbing and RV driving are just some of the reasons to visit these majestic landscapes on our doorstep. For further information see California State Parks.

And if you're into museums - take a quick scroll through Museums in the USA which lists all the museums you may ever be interested in seeing in California - a mere 165!

If you and your family want to know as much as possible about America before you move here, so you can impress your friends, read the CIA's World Factbook about the USA. There's also a Kids' Page on the CIA which will keep them entertained!

Under leisure, we should also add that since the state law of 1998, smoking is forbidden in public places, so if you're a smoker and are making a social visit, it's courteous to smoke outside. You must be 18 to smoke and 21 to drink alcohol.