The most extraordinary country to explore .
Sometimes Australia is called “the upside down world” because it lies in the Southern Hemisphere, where winter comes in July and summer begins in December .
During the Christmas holidays people often sunbathe on the beach or swim and surf in the ocean .
Australia is the hottest place in the Southern Hemisphere.
Most parts of Australia do not receive enough rain.
Only one sixth of the continent is comfortably humid.
It is interesting to notice that though most of the territory is too dry, Australia has an extraordinary collection of birds and animals.
Many of them are found only there.
Australia is the home of 2 of the world’s most primitive mammals – the duckbill or platypus and the echidna or spiny anteater .
They are the only mammals that lay eggs.
The kangaroo is perhaps the best known of Australia’s animals.
There are more than 40 different kinds of kangaroos in Australia, in many different colours and sizes.
The big red kangaroo and the grey kangaroo may be as tall as a grown-up man.
Some kangaroos are about the size of a large dog.
The smallest kangaroo is the rat kangaroo.
Another well-known Australia’s animal is the koala that resembles a teddy bear.
It spends most of its life in eucalyptus trees and eats only the leaves of these trees.
Among other animals found in Australia is the dingo, a wild dog which is yellowish brown and has a bushy tail.
The emu, Australia’s largest bird, is also one of the largest in the world.
It cannot fly but is a good runner.
Another curious bird is kookaburra that is often called the “laughing jackass”.
Two animals were brought to the country by the Europeans and have become wild in Australia.
These are the buffalo, brought from India, and the European rabbit.
Buffaloes were brought to the north coast as work animals early in the 19th century.
They escaped and multiplied and now inhabit the swampy river valleys around Darwin.
Many people would like to visit Australia because it is such an extraordinary place to explore.