About Sydney

Sydney (population: 3,538,970) is Australia's oldest and largest city and the capital of the state of New South Wales.  The city lies on a huge, deep harbor on the southeastern coast. This harbor, called Port Jackson, or Sydney Harbour, has made Sydney Australia's busiest seaport. Sydney also ranks as the nation's leading industrial city.

The city and its suburbs cover about 4,700 square miles (12,000 square kilometers).  Downtown Sydney lies on the south side of Sydney Harbour.  The oldest section of the city, an area called the Rocks, lies near the waterfront.  Before British settlement, this area had many rock formations.

George Street, the city's main street, runs through the center of downtown Sydney.  The downtown area includes many high-rise buildings.   East of the downtown area lies a series of parks, including Hyde Park, the Domain, and the Royal Botanic Gardens. The parliament house of New South Wales is also in this area.  Still farther east is a section called Kings Cross. This area includes many nightclubs and restaurants.

The names of many buildings and places in Sydney are reminders of the city's days as a prison colony.  Hyde Park Barracks near the parliament house, now a museum, originally housed male convicts.  An island in Sydney Harbour is called Pinchgut because it served as a prison where the inmates often went hungry.

Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Harbour Tunnel, which runs under the harbor, link downtown Sydney with the suburbs on the north shore. Other suburbs spread east, south, and west of the city. Two large recreation areas--Royal National Park and Ku-Ring-Gai Chase--lie just outside the Sydney metropolitan area.

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