Perth Western Australia Setting History People Sport

Perth is the state capital city of Western Australia, the largest state in Australia. Perth is the most isolated capital city in the world, and in June 2003 it had an estimated population of 1 433 217, making Perth the fourth largest city in the country. Perth is located at 31°58' South, 115°49' East (31.967, 115.817).

1 Setting

The Perth city skyline displays the economic prosperity the state has enjoyed in the past 20 years. Two towering skyscrapers dominate this skyline: BankWest Tower and the Central Park building . The Central Park tower is the fourth tallest completely habitable skyscraper in Australia, and the tallest outside of Melbourne, Victoria.

Perth is set on the Swan River, so named because of the native Black Swans which call the river home. It is a sprawling city, extending to Joondalup in the north, Mandurah in the south and Mundaring in the east. The beachside suburbs take advantage of Perth's seaside location and clean beaches. To the East, the city is bordered by a low escarpment called the Darling Scarp.

Perth is on generally flat, rolling land - largely due to the high amount of sandy soils and deep bedrock. Its wide roads, many parks and well-designed layout make it a peaceful place to live.

The Perth metropolitan area includes over thirty local governments (cities, towns and shires). These include Fremantle, BayswaterThe City of Bayswater is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. Bayswater is also a suburb within this local government area. Suburbs Bayswater Bedford Embleton Maylands Morley Noranda External links ., CanningThe City of Canning is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 65. 4 square kilometers in metropolitan Perth, the capital of Western Australia. The City of Canning maintains 545 km of roads and has a population of, StirlingThe City of Stirling is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 100 km² in metropolitan Perth, the capital of Western Australia and lies about 5 kilometers north west of the Perth CBD. Stirling is also a suburb wit, GosnellsThe City of Gosnells is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 127 square kilometers in metropolitan Perth, the capital of Western Australia and lies about 17 km South-East of the Perth CBD. The City of Gosnells h, NedlandsThe City of Nedlands is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 20 square kilometers in metropolitan Perth, the capital of Western Australia and lies about 6. 4km West of the Perth CBD. The City of Nedlands maintai, Peppermint GroveThe Shire of Peppermint Grove is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 1. 5 square kilometers in metropolitan Perth, making it the smallest municipality in Western Australia. The suburb is well known for its grac, ClaremontThe Town of Claremont is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of approximately 4. 9 square kilometers in metropolitan Perth, the capital of Western Australia and lies about 9km West of the Perth CBD. The Town of Claremont mainta, Victoria ParkThe Town of Victoria Park is a Local Government Area of Western Australia. It covers an area of 17. 62 square kilometers in metropolitan Perth, the capital of Western Australia. The Town of Victoria Park maintains 154. 55 km of roads, a little over 1 km² and Armadale. See Local Government Areas of Western Australia for a comprehensive list.

2 History

Perth was established by the British as a free settlers' colony in 1829 named the Swan River Colony, and later in 1849 as a convict colony. The initial settlement was in response to sightings of French ships in the region, and the later importation of convicts was at the request of settlers who wanted cheap labour.

The name Perth was chosen in 1829 by James Stirling. Stirling, a Scot, implemented the wish of Sir George Murray, Secretary for the Colonies, that the settlement be named after Perthshire, which was his birthplace as well as his parliamentary seat in the British House of Commons. On August 12 that year, Mrs Helen Dance cut down a tree to mark the day of the founding of the town.

In 1901, the colony joined the Federation of Australia. The city has prospered as a result of repeated mining booms, especially for gold, iron ore, nickel, and alumina: Western Australia is rich with mineral resources.

3 People

Perth is generally an egalitarian and relaxed city which is almost entirely middle class and suburban, although it does have pockets of extreme wealth and relative poverty. The population is easy-going and friendly, but can be parochial, especially towards the "Eastern States" which are often viewed with deep, but usually jocular, suspicion. This attitude can be attributed mainly to Perth's long held status as the world's most geographically isolated city - for example, travelling to the closest major capital to Perth ( Adelaide), represents a travel time of 3 hours by commercial flight.

4 Sport

Perth people mainly follow Australian Rules football, with both state teams in the Australian Football League (AFL) based in Perth. These teams are the West Coast Eagles and the Fremantle Dockers.

Perth is also home to the annual Hopman Cup tennis tournament, the annual Avon Descent whitewater event, and the annual Rally Australia .

Perth is very conducive to an outdoors lifestyle, and this is reflected in the wide variety of sports available to citizens of the city.

5 Education

Although a relatively small city, Perth is home to five universities: the University of Western Australia, Murdoch University, Curtin University, Edith Cowan University, and the University of Notre Dame Australia. The 90 year-old University of Western Australia in particular is renowned for its monumental neo-classical architecture, most of which is carved from white limestone, and is a notable tourist destination in the city.

6 Tourist attractions in and around Perth

A sun-baked city that can go weeks or even months without substantial rainfall, one of Perth's main attractions lies in the pristine quality of its beaches. Unbroken stretches of golden sands run the entire length of the city's coastal suburbs. While not unlike the beaches of the Gold Coast in Queensland, Perth has not yet experienced the same level of commercialisation and development and hence, degradation, that plagues other such naturally rich Australian urban environments.

The centre of Perth is located on the northern bank of the Swan River, and is roughly divided into three parallel sections.

the central business district, closest to the river, and which runs along St Georges and Adelaide Terraces,

the retail district, which has its focus on the Hay and Murray Street Malls, and

the entertainment and cultural precinct, known as Northbridge.

Kings Park sits upon a large hill (Mt Eliza) overlooking the CBD. Four times larger than New York's Central Park, Kings Park contains Perth's botanical gardens as well as vast tracts of natural bushland. During spring, Kings Park bursts into a world-class display of wildflowers, which is a popular tourist attraction. In August 2003, the Lotterywest Federation Walkway was opened in Kings Park. It is a 620m long elevated walkway through the treetops, providing a remarkable bird's eye view of the park and gardens as well as great views of the city.

Perth is a very green city, with an abundance of parks and tree-lined boulevards.

The Perth Zoo is across the Swan River in South Perth, accessible from the city by either the Narrows Bridge or by ferry from the Barrack Street Jetty.

The Swan Bells is a towering new Bell Tower siting on the edge of the Swan River. A copper structure representing the sails of a ship, it houses old bells from the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields (of nursery rhyme fame), which were a gift from the United Kingdom to the people of Australia on the occasion of Australia's 200 year anniversary of colonisation. It was opened to the public in 2001.

The Perth Convention Exhibition Centre opened in September 2004. Situated on the river foreshore, only a short walk from the CBD, the Centre is WA's only purpose built convention, exhibition and meeting centre. It can cater for functions of up to 2500 delegates. The Centre is expected to attract increased tourism for the state.

There are a few islands off the coast of Perth, notably Rottnest Island, a significant tourist attraction. Other nearby islands include Garden Island (home to a naval base), Carnac Island, Seal Island and Penguin Island. The deep shipping channel between Perth and these islands is called Gage Roads, the site of the America's Cup yachting challenge in 1983.

The historical port city of Fremantle is located at the mouth of the Swan River, and is home to many attractions. Most notable of these is the mammoth newly-constructed Western Australian Maritime Museum. Located on the dock at Victoria Quay, the museum houses Australia 2, the yacht which won Australia the America's Cup. Also in Fremantle is the Maritime Museum shipwreck galleries, with recovered artifacts and part of the hull of the shipwrecked Batavia, from hundreds of years ago.

Perth is home to Australia's largest underwater walk-through aquarium, AQWA (The Aquarium of Western Australia). Located at Hillarys Boat Harbour, this attracts large numbers of international tourists.

Perth is served by Perth Airport and Jandakot Airport .

7 External links

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