Climate
Seasons in Australia are the opposite of those in North America. Summer runs from November through to March while winter is from May to August. There are, however, huge variations throughout the country. New South Wales, the centre of Western Australia and Queensland have hot summers and mild winters but Victoria and Tasmania can experience chilly winters with short days. The dry interior is hot year-round during the day but come nightfall it can become very cold. In the north, as the country enters the tropics, there are just two seasons - the dry from May to September and the wet from December to March.

On most continents, forces such as glaciers and eroding mountains bring new soil to the surface of the land over thousands of years. Australia has been void of such process for the past 250 million years. Because Australia has not had any new geologic movements there has not been any new soil created. Over time rainwater has leached the soil of all its nutrients, leaving large expanses of land infertile. This makes the effects of the climate phenomenon "El Niño" much more extreme. Rivers spread miles wide during the wet season and shrink to little more than a trickle during the dry season. The climate of Australia has allowed for the creation of two of the most popular tourist destination in the world: the Great Barrier Reef and the Outback. It has also forced animals living in these extreme environments to develop specific attributes to survive the climate. For instance, kangaroos are perfectly adapted to travel long distances in search of food with very little exertion because the tendons in their legs make bouncing extremely efficient.

Culture
The unique climate has rendered the centre of Australia generally uninhabitable due to the lack of consistent water flow and fertile farming lands, thus most people (85% of the population) live within 50 km of the coast. There are six major cities in Australia: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra. Australian cities have huge suburban areas as only a few people live in the city centres. Most citizens prefer to live in their own houses in suburbs and may travel up to 1.5 hours to get to work.

There are many generalizations of Australians - friendly, easy-going, hearty drinkers, interested in travel, sports, and the outdoors. They are typically very up on current events and tend to be opinionated and anti-authoritarian. For the most part, these generalizations are pretty descriptive of the culture as a whole. However, statistically, Australians drink less than Brits and attend galleries and performing arts events nearly twice as often as sporting events.

Australia has been strongly influenced by immigration and its multicultural mix is among the most diverse in the world. The last census (2001) determined that 23% of the population is foreign-born. Because many refugees had suffered similar economic and political hardships as those suffered by the convicts who made up the original European settlers, they also express anti-authoritarian and egalitarian sentiments. This helps explain why many refugees actually exhibit stronger stereotypical Australian values than many Anglo-Australians.

Popular past-times include relaxing in the outdoors and following sports. Australians are sun-worshippers. With the majority of the population less than an hour from the coast, beaches and beach culture is very popular. Camping and bushwalking (hiking in the bush) are popular activities as well; Australians are frequent visitors to the more than 500 national parks in the country. They are also sport-crazed. The entire country stops to watch the Melbourne Cup, an annual horse race, and Aussie Rules Football, soccer, rugby and cricket all enjoy a faithful following.

Australia is a very clean country and visitors are expected to meet Australian standards of cleanliness. There is a stiff fine for littering. Australians are easy going, except, perhaps, when religion or politics are discussed. Clubs and social groups are popular. Many men frequent the local pubs after work and on weekends. Most students dress informally; jeans, skirts or trousers with casual T-shirts or blouses would be acceptable for most occasions. Shorts are often worn during summer months and sandals or running shoes are fine. Some specific courses, such as business or law, may require a higher standard of dress. Nightclub attire is expected in most cities.

Aboriginal culture
The rich indigenous culture of the Aboriginal people of Australia has a long and complex history. The Aborigines first arrived in Australia about 46,000 years ago. Primarily hunters and gatherers, the Aborigines have close ties to the land both physically and spiritually. Aborigines believe that they descended out of the "Dreamtime" and came to exist from the transformation of spirits to real beings. "Dreamtime" is the many myths and rituals connected to both the tribe's ancestors and the creators of the world, none of whom ever died but merged with the natural world and thus remained a part of the present. "Dreamtime" reflects a belief in the continuity of existence and harmony with the world. These myths and rituals were also a source of inspiration for Aboriginal art.

The process of colonization by European powers has had a radical effect on Aboriginal culture. At the time of Captain Cook's arrival, there were estimated to be one million Aborigines in Australia. Many died of disease, starvation, cultural dislocation and neglect. Today there are fewer than 230,000 Aborigines in Australia, less than 2% of the total population. The Australian government began making attempts to protect Aboriginal culture in 1920.