Overview: Australia is the sixth largest country in the world - more or
less the same size as mainland USA. This vast land however also has
the lowest population density in the world, with only two people
per square kilometre. Australia is politically divided into six states and two
territories, each one offering a different experience for the
traveller. There is the drama of the remote 'Outback', the
colourful spectacle of the Great Barrier Reef and its coral
islands, the excitement of the cosmopolitan cities, the sun and
surf at some of the best beaches in the world, and the tropical
rainforests of Western Australia. The list is endless in this
diverse land of adventure, which boasts 2,000 national parks and 14
World Heritage-listed areas, along with more than 7,000
beaches. Australia is a land of character too, with its melting pot of
cultures. For more than 50,000 years the Aboriginal people lived
and thrived in the continent's unique environment. It is believed
the Aboriginals are the world's oldest civilisation, and in recent
years there has been a resurgence of interest in keeping the
Aboriginal culture alive and flourishing. The vast continent at the bottom of the world was the last
landmass to be discovered by European explorers. Captain James Cook
arrived in Botany Bay in 1770 and sparked off generations of
emigration to Australia, which for some time served as a penal
colony. It was not until 1860 that two explorers - Robert Burke and
William Wills - became the first Europeans to cross Australia from
south to north. The country remains a magnet for modern explorers
and adventurers and has a great deal to offer tourists and
holidaymakers.
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