Brolga (aka Chris Barns) is the 6ft 7in strong but sensitive Aussie star of the extraordinary BBC series Kangaroo Dundee. Brolga lives in a simple tin shed in the outback where he raises orphaned baby kangaroos. It is a sad fact of life that kangaroo mothers are at the mercy of speeding cars in this part of the world - killed on the road, their young still tucked up in their pouches. These young joeys holding on to life, have been given a second chance thanks to the kindness and dedication of Brolga, who carefully retrieves them and nurses them back to health. Brolga has been rescuing these special creatures for years, slowly and painstakingly creating a kangaroo sanctuary for the many kangaroos he has saved, reared and loved. He has dedicated his life to observing how kangaroo mums care for their babies and does everything he can to replicate this. The baby kangaroos, traumatised by losing their mother so early, are tucked up into pillow cases and kept warm and comforted next to Brolga at night. We see him getting up at 4am to bottle feed them, washing them in a little tub, taking them to the supermarket and generally mothering them with heart breaking tenderness. Charting Brolga's life with the joeys and honing in on his relationship with one or two in particular, Kangaroo Dundee tells the heart-warming, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant story of one man's unique relationship with a group of extraordinary animals.

Learn about the history of Uluru, also known as Ayres Rock, in Australia with iMinds Travel's insightful fast knowledge series. Uluru is the indigenous Australian name for an enormous rock formation found in central Australia. Made from sandstone, Uluru is a rock monolith or an 'island mountain', a formation that geologists refer to as a monadnock. It stands 318 m (986 ft) high and has a circumference of 8 km (5 miles). It is located 335 km (208 mi) south west of the nearest rural centre, the large town of Alice Springs. The site was first mapped by Europeans in 1872 during the construction of the Australian Overland Telegraph Line that linked the northern settlement of Darwin to Port Augusta in South Australia. Uluru was originally named Mount Olga by Ernest Giles. On a separate expedition in 1870, the explorer William Gosse renamed the formation Ayers Rock in honour of the Chief Secretary of South Australia, Sir Henry Ayers. The name was made official until 1992, when it was renamed Uluru/Ayers Rock as an official dual title, honouring both the European and Aboriginal names. Uluru is, as Ernest Giles referred to it in 1872, the world's "most remarkable pebble." iMinds will tell you the story behind the place with its innovative travel series, transporting the armchair traveller or getting you in the mood for discover on route to your destination. iMinds brings targeted knowledge to your eReading device with short information segments to whet your mental appetite and broaden your mind.

From August 1965 to February 1968, during his period of service in Australia, Ambassador Edward Clark traveled in that country as no other American and probably few Australians ever have. His wife, Anne Clark, traveled with him, then wrote her observations and impressions to friends and family in the United States. Her letters, published for the first time in this volume, reveal the isolations and involvements as well as the opportunities and the pleasures of embassy life. The etiquette of official functions at times posed problems, as in the Clarks' first black-tie dinner with the Acting Governor General, where Mrs. Clark was supposed to curtsy. "Some Ambassadors feel strongly that the representative of the President of the United States should never bend his knee (or rather his wife's) to any man. Mrs. Battle, wife of our predecessor ... put the question directly to President Kennedy. His answer to her was, 'Curtsy you must, but keep a stiff upper knee.'" Soon, Anne Clark realized that the routine of appearances and entertainments was constant: "I do not know when I will make peace with the schedule. I am a slave to the little black book that is my calendar." In addition to the intricacies of embassy life, the Clarks encountered much that was unfamiliar—new people, almost a new language, new flowers, new animals—even a sky with its new moon upside down. But their warm hospitality and genuine interest in things Australian attracted friends throughout the continent. Figures from the government, the church, the diplomatic circle, and everyday life, plus well-known guests from home, all become known to the reader in this perceptive account of official life from the inside.

This book of drawings and watercolours is devoted to my impressions of the majestic beauties or 'icons' of the continent, but also aims to present my observations about the 'small Australia' of ordinary buildings and landscape; the general stores, the post offices, the railway stations, the old hotels, the tea rooms, the corrugated iron sheds, the empty shops, the disused mines and the classical colonial town halls reminiscent of the old and far away Europe. I wanted to show places like Dimbullah and Norseman that are unknown to outsiders but are just as interesting in their own ways as Sydney Harbour and Uluru.

Following are a few brief excerpts from this guide, written by a lifelong resident of Australia. She covers everything you might want to know about this part of Australia - guaranteed! The places to stay, from budget to luxury, rentals to B&Bs, the restaurants, from fast food to the highest quality, the beachwalks and bushwalks, the wildlife and how to see it, exploring the country by air, on water, by bike, and every other way. Australia's Northern Territory is a vast land of contrasts, stretching from the beautiful reefs and tropical rainforests at the very top of the country down through the amber deserts and dusty golden plains of the Red Centre. In the north, the land is edged by a melding of languid mangrove swamps and smooth white beaches. Brilliant corals spread out beneath the waters, lining coves split by wide brown estuaries. Rivers snake from the coast down through thick woodlands and deep canyons, dwindling in width as they reach the drier plains. Here, the north Australian Outback is the true, endless Land of the Never Never, so famously coined by author Jeannie Gunn her We of the Never Never novel of Outback station life. Quite simply, those who live here, or who have stumbled across the fascination of its true beauty, can never, never leave it. Halfway down through the territory are the great, ochre-colored deserts, where the fine red earth is splashed with random thatches of spiny grass and clusters of rough-chiseled boulders. All you can see to the horizon at noon is blood-red earth and pale blue sky, the vast expanse only interrupted by the low, green-gold peaks of the MacDonnell Ranges at the far southern edge of the region. Their rumpled slopes hide pockets of waterholes and huge, shallow lakes, all of which erupt with animal activity after the rains. Near the base of the territory, almost at the border of South Australia, is the great red monolith of Uluru, the country's most famous sight which pushed up through the surface millions of years ago. It's impossible to either generalize this near-rectangular region's very different environments or to completely describe each one's individual natural beauty and character. Suffice it to say that it's a place you will never forget, a remote territory filled with everything a traveler could possibly want -adventures on water, in the forests, on the rivers, and in the deserts. In fact, it's an adventure to get to pretty much anywhere when you're here. Bushwalking: Charles Darwin National Park. Right along the edge of Darwin Harbour, this large park combines 3,584 acres/1,280 hectares of coastal environments, rivers, mangrove swamps, and open forests linked by easy trails. Interpretive displays highlight local Aboriginal and World War II sights, and there are paved walkways and bike paths for strollers and wheelchairs. Bring your camera to the lookout platform, from where there are splendid views of the city from across Francis Bay. Ranger-guided walks also run weekly, and there are picnic areas with grills. It's open daily 7 to 7; the historic display is open 8 to 5. To get here, drive three mi/51/2 km east of Darwin on Tiger Brennan Drive to Bowen Road and Winnellie, then turn south through the gates. East Point Reserve: This is the place to warm up your bushwalking boots. Lake Alexander, a man-made saltwater lake, is spread through a 554-acre/198-hectare expanse of close-knit forests and mangrove swamps. Trails run through the woods and along the cliffs, where west-facing beaches lining a panorama of Fannie Bay span a gorgeous setting for late-afternoon picnics. Sections of open, groomed parklands also have walking and bike paths, and you can swim and boat in the lake. The East Point Military Museum (Sightseeing, below) is also on the grounds. It's free to explore the reserve and lake area, which are open daily 5 am to 11 pm. To get here, take East Point Road to Fannie Bay.