The state of Western Australia is big, bold and beautiful, and
despite covering one third of Australia has a population of fewer
than two million. It has miles of coastline washed by the Indian
Ocean and a range of climatic zones from tropical through to
temperate. The northern area is raw and harsh; the south is
characterised by rolling green pasture; to the west is the ocean
while to the east lie golden wheat fields.
The true richness of Western Australia lies in its huge mineral
deposits - gold, diamonds, iron ore, bauxite, nickel, natural gas
and oil lie under the ground and provide employment for much of the
population. The goldfields of Kalgoorlie still produce a couple of
thousand of ounces of gold a day. The young and vital state
capital, Perth, was built on the mineral wealth of the state and
offers a leisurely lifestyle centred on its lovely beaches for its
large immigrant population.
Western Australia is big on extremes; it boasts 8,000 species of
wildflower, more than any other region in the world. It has the
smallest church, the largest casino and the narrowest pub in the
Southern Hemisphere. Its rocky coastline has also been responsible
for plenty of tragedy - more than 700 vessels have come to grief
here since the first Dutch sailors arrived on the shores of the
state in the 17th century.
