Sydney the Metropolitan City

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population around

4.12 million. It is the state capital of New South Wales and is the site of the fi rst European colony

in Australia. The city is Australia’s largest fi nancial centre.

Sydney is located on Australia’s south-east coast. The city is built around Port Jackson, which

includes Sydney Harbour, leading to the city’s nickname, “the Harbour City”.

This city is a major international tourist destination famous for its beaches and twin landmarks: the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. The metropolitan area is surrounded

by national parks, and contains many bays, rivers and inlets.

Sydney also has many shopping centres and retail outlets throughout the city. The Queen

Victoria Building on George Street also contains many shops. Many of the large regional centres

around the metropolitan area also contain large shopping complexes.

Sydney has several museums. The biggest are the Australian Museum (natural history and

anthropology), the Powerhouse Museum (science, technology and design), the Art Gallery of New

South Wales, the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Australian National Maritime Museum.

Sydney’s Central Business District (CBD) extends southwards for about 3 kilometres (1.25 mi) from Sydney Cove. It is the point of the fi rst European settlement in the area at the southern

end of the bridge known as “The Rocks”. It is densely concentrated with skyscrapers and other

buildings including historic sandstone buildings such as the Sydney Town Hall and Queen Victoria

Building are combined by several parks such as Wynyard and Hyde Park.

Source: Interlanguage: English for Senior High School Students XI