Six sovereign states, federated in 1901, and seven

territories, including the Australian Capital Territory,

the Northern Territory and various islands, comprise the

Commonwealth of Australia. Despite the fact that it has

the world s lowest density of population, Australia is the

most urbanised nation. Eighty-two per cent of its sixteen

million people live in its cities. The largest city, Sydney,

capital of New South Wales, is a bustling, vital city

blessed with a magnificent harbour. The capital of

Victoria, Melbourne, is more conservative and English ,

with its Victorian architecture, fine parks, gardens and

tree-lined streets. The smaller state capitals, Brisbane,

Adelaide, Perth and Hobart, have been less subject to

overseas influence and are more truly Australian.

Canberra, an imaginatively designed city, is the nation s

capital.

Australia is a large island continent with a broad

fertile coastal strip, which supports most of the

population, separated from the overwhelming desolation

of the inland by mountain ranges. Its vast land mass

provides a magnificent diversity of scenery, including the

world s largest coral formation, the Great Barrier Reef,

mountain ranges that are alpine in character and ideal

for winter sports, and the Red Centre, with its huge

rocky outcrops sculptured by wind and sand.

Diversity is also reflected in Australia s flora and

fauna. The beaul~y and abundance of Australian

wildflowers is unsurpassed. Geographically isolated,

Australia provided a refuge for many unique species of

animals, such as the koala and the kangaroo, Australia s

best-known ambassadors.