A separate island located 240km (149 miles) south of Melbourne across Bass Strait. Roughly heartshaped， Tasmania is 296km (184 miles) long， ranging from 315km (196 miles) wide in the north to 70km (44 miles) in the south. The island has a diverse landscape comprising rugged mountains (snowcapped in winter)， dense bushlandbushland n.未开垦森林地带 (including the Horizontal Forest， socalled because the tree trunks are bent over parallel to the ground)， tranquil countryside and farmland. Approximately 36 percent of Tasmania is protected in national parks and other reserves， over half of this being the World Heritagelisted temperate wilderness in the west of the island. Located midway between Victoria and the northwest of Tasmania in Bass Strait lies King Island. This rich and fertile island， famous for its beef and dairydairy n.牛奶场， 奶品场， 售牛奶， 奶油， 鸡蛋等的商店， 奶制品 products， is regularly serviced by air carriers and is a popular tourist destination. To the northeast of Tasmania， also in Bass Strait， can be found Flinders Island， part of the Furneaux group of islands. Flinders Island is also popular with visitors and is particularly noted for its excellent coastal fishing and pristine beaches. Bruny Island， south of Hobart across the D，Entrecasteaux Channel， has superb beaches. The two parts of the island are joined by a narrow isthmus of sanddunes， the home of Fairy Penguins from August to April.
Victoria
Victoria is Australia，s most diversediverse adj.不同的， 变化多的 state and its major agricultural and industrial producer. Located in the southeast， bordered by South Australia and New South Wales， its landscape consists of mountains， rainforests， deserts， snowfields， beaches， vineyards， wheatlands and market gardens. The Australian Alps are only three hours away from Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road to South Australia is a day，s drive. Victoria has 32 national parks， amounting to a third of Australia，s total.
Western Australia
Western Australia covers onethird of Australia； it is larger than Western Europe， but has a population only onesixth that of London. It is bordered in the east by South Australia and the Northern Territory and in the west by the Indian Ocean， with the Timor Sea to the north. The west coast is nearer to Bali and Indonesia than to Sydney， making Perth a viable stopoverstopover n.中途停留 destination en route to the rest of Australia. To the south， the nearest land mass is Antarctica， 2600km (1600 miles) away. It has mineral wealth in iron， bauxite， nickel， natural gas， oil， diamonds and gold. There are vast wheatlands， forests and deserts， and several national parks. A popular resort is Rottnest Island； there are also many excellent mainland beaches， particularly around Perth. Kimberley， in the far north， is one of the oldest geological areas on earth， a region where time and weather have formed deep gorges and impressive mountains， arid red plains and coastal sandstone rich in fossils. In the northwest there are two notable features： Wolf Creek Crater， an immenseimmense adj.极广大的， 无边的， <口>非常好的 hole left in the desert by a giant meteoritemeteorite n.陨星 50，000 years ago， and the Bungle Bungles， an ancient sandstone massif covering 3000 sq km (1160 sq miles). Southeast of Perth， near Hyden， there is the 2700 million yearold Wave Rock.
You can visit deserts， climb or ski rugged mountains， water raft down raging rivers or over thundering waterfalls and sail the clear waters of the surrounding ocean. No wonder Australians love the great outdoors and have perfected the art of recreation. Whatever sport or activity you，d like to try， from the sky diving to golf or camel riding； this is the land of opportunity and visiting will give you the chance to experiment.
When the sun goes down， the cities buzz with live jazz and rock in pubs， alfresco cafes and nightclubs. From Sydney，s Opera House， Melbourne，s International and Underground film festivals， Adelaide，s Festival of Arts and Fringe Festival or the Perth Festival of Arts， Australia is a land of cultural enlightenmentenlightenment n.启迪， 教化. Here too Aboriginal culture and art， from plays to paintings， not to mention the traditional Corroboree dance and story telling sessions are wonderful forms of entertainment for all and discovering them for yourself adds to the excitement of visiting this， the largest island on our planet.
Some of the world，s finest hotels and resorts catering to just about every taste - families， singles， romantic couples and groups are located here. Known for blue skies and sunshine， and with a climate that，s generally pleasant without any extremes in temperatures， Australia is the ideal place to visit any time of the year. From winter skiing in the Australian Alps between June and September， to year round beach holidays in Queensland， Australia，s varied range of pleasant climates makes it an ideal holiday destination.
