EDUCATION

THE GREAT BARRIER REEF, AUSTRALIA



Spanning more than 2000km along the northeastern coast of Australia, the Great Barrier Reef is home to thousands of species of plants and animals. The Australian Government as a Marine Park has designated the Reef, which run parallel to the Queensland coast.

Few can imagine the biological diversity of the reef. One probably has to realize first that the 2000km long reef runs predominantly in the North-South direction, therefore spanning a wide range of climates. Rain forests and mountains are predominant in the northern islands, while the southern islands are composed mainly of Coral Cay.

Apart from its environmental value, the area offers visitors a variety of activities including scuba diving, snorkeling, water sports and bird watching.

The Sydney Opera House took more than 6 years to complete. It is supposed to look like a giant sailing ship, and from some angles it does look exactly that. This giant structure has well over two thousand glass panes specifically made for it in France. Unless one gets too close to the building one does not realize that what covers the sails so to speak is in fact rectangular ceramic tiles. Much like the tiles in the bathroom, except that there are well over one million of them made for the Opera House in Sweden.

It also lies close to the other famous Sydney landmark, the "Harbour Bridge which joins Central Sydney to the north Shores. Best views of the two together are seen from McMahons Point, Kirribilli, and the approach to the Opera House from the Botanical Gardens.

We have certainly enjoyed putting this site together and hope that you enjoy the pleasing water effects as seen here, made possible by the Java Apiette of David Griffiths, and the music, which has been put together by Pierre R. Schwob from his MIDI Archives. The splendid sequencing of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata heard at the front page is by Wesley Venable we shall be changing the pictures and the music program changes every month, so visit us again for a virtual tour of the Sydney Opera House.

Better skill take some time off, enjoy a boat trip on the Harbour and finish your day off with a concert at the Sydney Opera House.