Great Barrier Reef.  It is the land of opportunity, the new educational El Dorado and world hub of higher education 

Political Information The Commonwealth of Australia, with the British Queen as the Head of State,has a bicameral parliament with six states (New South 'Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia) and two territories (Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory)

Economic Information
Australia has a western-style capitalistic system.  It is the 14th largest economy by GDP in the world and has one of the fastest-growing economies in the OECD countries as a result of government policies.  It has a per capita GDP of around $30,000 per annum.

The Australian economy is dominated by the education section which generates 65% of the GDP.  As a result there are high-end jobs available, the demand for highly-skilled labour exceeds the supply.

The Australian economy is vibrant and has performed above expectations.  In recent decades the service sector has performed well in growth terms with more than 70% of the population employed in this sector.  The massive labour force in the service sector will guarantee Australia's growth in the coming decades.

Cultural Information
Australia is a truly multicultural society.  This is evidenced through the country and describes the soul of the Australian culture.  Wherever you are in Australia you will find friendly, outgoing, helpful people.  Australian public life is governed by decent behaviour and an adherence to just laws. 

Australia has an interesting combination of both traditional and modern cultural elements.  The Aboriginal culture  is evident in the areas of art, artifacts, music, dance and theatre.  Australia is also famous for pop music groups, artists working in all mediums and styles and the country has been very successful in film production and lively television broadcasting.

Australians love sports and play cricket across the country as well as soccer, rugby league, rugby union.  They are great athletes competing successful in many events in the Olympics.

Historical Information
Australia is the largest island continent on Earth. Archaeologist believe that the first human settlers arrived  50 000 years ago and probably occurred when the sea levels were low and land bridges existed between the Indian sub continent all the way to Australia. The climate then was more humid and the animals living here larger.

Although much of Australia became populated, the central dry areas did not attract settlers until about 25 000 years ago. For the next 10 000 years the population increased as the climate improved.

The first record of European contact with Australia occurred in March 1606 when the Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon (c. 1570-1630) mapped the west coast of Cape York Peninsula, Queensland. A little later that year the Spanish Explorer Luis Vaez de Torres sailed through the strait separating Australia and Papua New Guinea. And then over the next two centuries European explorers and traders continued to chart the coastline of Australia, then known as New Holland until in 1770 Captain James Cook on a scientific voyage to the South Pacific charted the east coast of Australia and claimed it for the British Crown. Many landmarks carry European names such as Torres Strait, Arnhem Land, dampier Sound, Tasmania, Cape Freycinet and La Perouse.

On the 26th January 1778 the First Fleet arrived at Sydney Cove with 11 ships and 1500 people to found the first European settlement on Australian soil. It is estimated that the aboriginal population at that time was about 300 000 people speaking around 250 languages.

On arrival finding no obvious political structure, the Europeans claimed the land as their own. The indigenous people were driven out of their homes, some were killed and many died of European diseases that spread rapidly among them. The introduction of feral and domestic animals contributed to the destruction of natural habitats.

From 1788 until 1823 the Colony of New South Wales was a penal or prison colony. From 1823 the British Government established a New South Wales parliament by setting up a Legislative Council and a Supreme Court. In 1901 the Commonwealth of Australia was established, a federation of the states of New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland , Western Australia and South Australia