As Australia is an island the one of the only ways to reach it is by plane, and this is how most tourist chose to travel to the continent, however it is a long flight from anywhere, being in the middle of the ocean, therefore many people chose to do the journey in several parts. The internet is a very good resource to find affordable tickets and www.cheapflights.com.au is a one good example. There is so much one can learn about Australia, regardless if you travel along or plan a family vacation, but we thought about something cooler to bring to you. The county has many interesting facts, here is a list of 10 cool and awesome facts about Australia:
1. Despite the size of Australia as a country, it is in fact the smallest continent in the world at 7,692,024 km², this also makes it the largest island in the world.
2. The first British people to reach Australia was in 1788, and very soon after it began to be a place where the British brought over their prisoners from England. About 162,000 convicts were brought over on 806 ships, about 98% of these were from the United Kingdom but some were sent from other British Colonies such as Canada.
3.The Sydney Opera House is one of Australia’s greatest landmarks, the design was chosen after a competition was held in the 1950’s and it was finally finished in 1973, opened by Queen Elisabeth 3rd. It is said to represent that of sailing ships on the water.
4. The emu and kangaroo were chosen to be on the Australian coat of arms as not only are these incapable of walking backwards. This is said to symbolize the country moving forward.
5. As Australia is an island it has a very large coastline (11m sq km), so it is for this reason that fish is the most predominant food eaten, with nearly 600 species of fish in their waters, both freshwater and saltwater.
6. The original inhabitants of Australia were the Aboriginal people, are still around today and have one of the worlds oldest continuing cultures. They have been living on the continent of Australia for up to 60000 years. The population now is culturally diverse with people living on the continent from all over the world.
7. People that live in Australia are encouraged to learn English as it is the national language and it brings everyone together, but many other languages are also spoken such as Italian and Greek.
8. Australia is one of the flattest land masses on earth, and due to this there is no extremes of climate due to there being no high mountain ranges. However the continent is one of the driest, much of the land being taken up by desert.
9. Only 3% of Australia’s population lives in the dry part of Australia (this covers 70% of the land) the rest of the population lives in the coastal areas.
10. Australia is home to the Great Barrier reef, which is considered to be one of the 7 wonders of the world. People come from all over the world to dive into Australian waters and observe the natural phenomena.
These are just a few of the many facts about Australia, which is rich in unique history, geography and culture. Many tourists travel here every year to experience new things and see the many sights that the worlds largest island has to offer.
