Australia

Impressive, isn’t it?

Hi, everybody! I'm a red kangaroo. My name’s John. I came from … The Land Down Under.

Oops, I’m falling!

I’m fine! Don’t worry! I’ve had worse times.

In my country New Year is in the middle of summer, the middle of winter is in June and the winter months are never cold! Hot winds blow from the north; cold winds blow from the south!!!

Is it possible???

Yes, in the fantastic Land Down Under!

What is the official name of this land?

Is it –Great Britain, Africa, or Australia?

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Austarlia.

It is called “The land Down Under”, because of its geographical position. It lies in the Southern Hemisphere.

Another nickname for Australia is OZ. It is used by Australians as a shorthand for “Aus”, which is the abbreviation for Australia.

Aussie is a slang term used to refer to Australian people. Aussie like to shorten words to a bare minimum for convenience and efficiency.

Compare these examples of British and Australian English:

Covering a total area of 7.69 million square kilometres, mainland Australia is the world’s largest island - but the smallest continent.

Australia's land mass is almost as great as that of the United States of America and Europe. 32 times greater than the United Kingdom.

Lying between the Indian and Pacific oceans, the country is approximately 4,000 km from east to west and 3,200 km from north to south, with a coastline 36,735 km long, making it the sixth-largest nation after Russia, Canada, China, the United States and Brazil.

Australia's first inhabitants, the Aboriginal people, are believed to have migrated from Asia to Australia between 50,000 and 60,000 years ago.

The first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch. They named the island continent "New Holland" during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement.

In 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales.

In 1783, the British Government sent a fleet of ships, under the command of Captain Arthur Phillip, to establish a new penal colony in New South Wales.

The flag raised at Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, on 26 January 1788, a date which became Australia's national day, Australia Day.

Until 1901 Australia was a British colony. Now Australia is an independent federal state within the Commonwealth headed by the British Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen is represented by Governor General - Sir Peter Cosgrove (since 2014). The Head of Government is Prime Minister – Tony Abbot (since 2013).

Australia's population is roughly 23.6 million people. It is mainly of British origin. If you lined up the 23 million people who live in Australia, you would be able to cover approx. 11,000 km.

Most of Australia's population lives on the fertile plains of the eastern and southeastern coasts. The Aborigines, the Australian natives, represent about 1.5 per cent of the population. Most of them still live in the desert areas of the Australian outback.

The “outback” is the vast, dry and remote inland of the continent. Some aboriginal people live still in the sacred area around Ayres Rock (“Uluru”), a huge rock formation in the center of the continent and in Kakadu National Park.

A digeridoo is a wind instrument, a kind of wooden trumpet, is a national Aboriginal instrument, which is really difficult to play.

Canberra is the national capital and the centre of government. It is located in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). Its name is thought to mean “meeting place”, from the Aboriginal word ‘Kamberra’. It is a home to important national institutions, including the Australian Parliament and the High Court of Australia.

The Australian Flag is based on the Blue English. The British Union Jack is placed in the upper corner. This shows that Australia is part of the British Commonwealth. Beneath the Union Jack is a large white star with seven points. The points represent the six states and the territories. On the right hand side are the stars of the Southern Cross. It can always be seen in the Australian sky at night.

The Aboriginal flag was proclaimed a "Flag of Australia" by the Governor General of Australia, William Hayden, on 14 July 1995. The flag was designed to be a symbol of their race and identity.

The black represents the Aboriginal people, the red - the earth and their spiritual relationship to the land, and the yellow the sun, the giver of life.

The present coat of arms was granted in 1912 by King George V. It consists of a shield composed of six parts, each containing a badge for each state. The shield is supported by the kangaroo on the left and the emu on the right. The crest consists of the seven-pointed Commonwealth gold star, a symbol of national unity. At the base of the shield is a scroll on which is printed the word "Australia".

Australia has six states and two major mainland territories.

At the top end of Australia lies the Northern Territory. Darwin is the capital. The Northern Territory is home to the famous Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kakadu National Park.

New South Wales is Australia’s oldest and most populated state. Sydney is the nation’s largest city where a unique building of the Opera House is placed. The Three Sisters are mysterious rock formations in the Blue Mountains in NSW.

Queensland is Australia’s second-largest state in size. The state capital is Brisbane. It has 300 days of sunshine a year. It’s also home to some of the country’s most notable highlights, from the golden beaches of the Gold Coast to the clear blue waters of the Great Barrier Reef.

Victoria is the smallest of the mainland states in size. Melbourne is the capital and is Australia’s second most populated city. The Twelve Apostles are seven magnificent rock stacks that rise up from the Southern Ocean. The Eureka is actually the world's tallest residential tower (and Australia's tallest building)

Western Australia is Australia’s largest state by area. About three-quarters of the state’s population live in the capital Perth. The Kalgoorlie Golden Mile contained the richest square mile of gold reserves in the world. The Bungle Bungles are the orange and black sandstone domes and is one of the world’s most fascinating geological landmarks.

South Australia is a state which covers some of the most arid parts of the continent. The state capital is Adelaide. South Australia is sometimes known as the ‘Festival State’. The Flinders Ranges are the largest mountain range in Australia. The Barossa Valley is notable as a major wine-producing region.

The Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It is home to important national institutions, including the Australian Parliament and the High Court of Australia. It has a beautiful artificial lake Burley Griffin.

Tasmania is separated from mainland Australia by Bass Strait and is the smallest state in Australia. The capital is Hobart. It is one of the world's most mountainous islands whose geology reflects Australia’s connection millions of years ago with Antarctica. The tourists attractions are Hastings Caves and Mount Wellington.

Australia is the flattest and driest continent. Two-thirds of the land is desert. In some places it sometimes doesn't rain for years! The driest and hottest place in Australia is the Simpson Desert. Summer temperatures here can be more than 50°C. The Simpson Desert is famous for its parallel sand dunes.

The highest point of Australia is Mount Kosciusko (2,228 m)

The greatest Australia’s rivers are the Murray and the Darling.

The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef in the world and the only living thing on our planet that can be seen from space!

There are more than 1,500 kinds of fish and 400 types of coral in the Great Barrier Reef. No place on land has a greater variety of sea life!

What a fantastic place! Australia keeps on amazing us with its views!

This is the Daintree Forest.

Australian forests are mostly made up of evergreen species, particularly

 eucalyptus trees.

Look! Koala is sleeping on the branches of the eucalyptus! Come on ! Don’t wake it up!

And be aware of Cassowary! It’s the most dangerous bird in the world.

Look at this unusual tree. Does it resemble anything to you? A bottle. This is a bottle-tree.

Do you feel the smell? M-m-m. Acacia is in blossom. Acacia is a tree symbol of Australia.

What a long fence! How can I get through it?

Aha! I can jump it over!

This is the world’s longest fence (5,614 km)! The fence was built in the early 1900's to keep dingoes or wild dogs out and protect the sheep flocks.

Phew! Here we are!

Australian is a home to other well-known animals, besides dingos and koalas, the platypus, echidna, wombat, Tasmanian devil. And the animal symbol of Australia is - kangaroo!

The most famous birds are the kookaburra, that laughs like a human and the emu.

There are many dangerous animals in Australia including some of the most venomous snakes in the world.

We had a long and amazing trip today! I’ve made so many selfies! By the way, did you know that the slang word “selfie” originated in Australia?