Australia

Australia Australia is the only country in the world to occupy a single continent. It is a land of contrasts containing many different climates with unique flora and fauna found nowhere else on earth. Australia also enjoys an international reputation for being safe and friendly, English is the spoken language and the good exchange rate to the Australian dollar means you will get value for money when you come here. Map of Australia Australia is situated below Asia, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean, the Tasman Sea, the Coral Sea and the Arafura Sea. The nearest country is not New Zealand but Papua New Guinea. However New Zealand and Australia combined make up the area called Australasia or Oceania. Australia's unique geographical location means that it is isolated from the rest of the Western World. But Australia is ideally suited to trading with Asia more so than Europe or North America. About half of Australian exports currently go to Asia. Australia is about the same size in area as the United States excluding Alaska. But the population is much smaller. With around 20 million inhabitants it is the most sparsely populated continent after the Antarctica. photoThe climate in Australia is varied and ranges from tropical to sub alpine. Australia is also the oldest land mass on earth and the most eroded of all continents, with some notable exceptions. This vast land mass is also the most stable of all continents, with few major fault lines. This means that Australia lacks high mountains ranges such as what you find in neighboring New Zealand. However all the eons of erosion have formed some of the strangest geographical features on earth, such as Ayers Rock in the Northern Territory, or the Bungle Bungles Mountains, and The Pinnacles of Western Australia. All this erosion has also given Australia many spectacular sandy beaches, in fact Australia has more beaches than any other nation on earth. photoAustralia is also the driest inhabited continent on earth, but the eastern seaboard where the majority of the population is concentrated, is a lush and fertile area, with a climate ranging from temperate to tropical. The main mountain range is known as the Great Dividing Range or Eastern Highlands. This long mountain chain separates the green eastern seaboard from the barren Outback. The southern end of the Great Dividing Range has an area known as the Snowy Mountains, or otherwise known as the the Australian Alps. This area actually receives more snow than Switzerland, and is the only area suitable for skiing in Australia. Australia also contains many pockets of tropical and temperate rain forest on the eastern coast, but the predominate forest in Australia is Eucalyptus.