Downtown LA

This photo was taken from the south side of Mount Hollywood in Griffith Park. When I saw this view, I truly understood just how extreme "urban sprawl" can be. Around the small group of tall buildings in Downtown Los Angeles, you can see endless neighborhoods stretching out in every direction. The city seems to go on forever without a clear end. Even though Los Angeles is famous for having one of the best-designed road networks in the world, with so many cars and such a huge area, it’s no surprise that traffic jams are still a big problem here.

The tallest spike you see is Wilshire Grand Center, topping out at 1,100 ft (335 m) and crowned by a lighted spire—currently the highest point west of the Mississippi. Just to its right is the U.S. Bank Tower, once L.A.’s pride at 1,018 ft (310 m) and kitted out with a famous outdoor slide.  Downtown covers only 5.84 sq mi (15.1 km²) yet hosts roughly 85 k residents and more than 500 k jobs—a hefty employment engine inside the giant city.

By contrast, Manhattan is the poster‑child for vertical living. Blocks are short, the subway is dense, and every square foot is fought over. That intensity pushes buildings higher and streets busier. In practical terms, the island is only one‑twentieth the land area of Los Angeles, yet it packs in nearly half its population.