Most people harbour a particular image of Australia, such as the Opera House or blood-red Uluru (Ayers Rock). Yet these famous icons do scant justice to the richness of Australia's natural treasures and its cultural diversity. Australia offers a wealth of travel experiences, from the vastness and drama of the outback, to the spectacle of the Great Barrier Reef and its islands, the cosmopolitanism of Sydney and arguably some of the best beaches in the world. Visitors expecting to see an opera in Sydney one night and meet Crocodile Dundee the next will have to re-think their grasp of geography in this huge country. It is this sheer vastness, and the friction between the ancient land steeped in Aboriginal lore and the New World cultures being heaped upon it, which gives Australia much of its character.

Full country name: Commonwealth of Australia
Area: 7,682,300 sq km
Population: 19.5 million
Capital city: Canberra (pop: 313,000)
People: 94% European descent, 4% Asian, 1.5% Aboriginal
Languages: English, Aboriginal languages (plus numerous other European, Arabic and Asian languages)
Religion: 75% Christian, 1% Muslim, 1% Buddhist, 0.5% Jewish
Government: Independent member of the the Commonwealth of Nations
Prime Minister: John Howard
Governor-General: Michael Jeffery

GDP: US$418 billion
GDP per head: US$22,000
Annual growth: 4%
Inflation: 2%
Major products/industries: Minerals, oil, coal, gold, wool, cereals, meat, tourism.
Major trading partners: Japan, ASEAN, South Korea, China, New Zealand, US and the EU.

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