No barriers life: Erik Weihenmayer

Erik Weihenmayer (b. 1968) is an American athlete, adventurer, activist and author who lost his vision when he was 14 years old. But his inability to see could in no way deter him in his pursuit of adventure. He became the first visually-impaired person to climb the Seven Summits – the seven tallest peaks, namely Mt Kosciuszko in Australia, Mt …

The naming of Los Angeles

In 1769, a Franciscan priest Father Juan Crespí accompanied a group of Spanish soldiers on the first European land expedition through California. In his journal he described a ‘beautiful river from the northwest’ and named it ‘Nuestra Señora de los Angeles de la Porciúncula’. In 1781, a settlement by the river was established. This settlement was …