Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

'Sydney Harbour: James Cook [1728-1779] and his crew on the Endeavour passed the entrance to Sydney Harbour in 1770, on their way north from Botany Bay. Although Cook did not investigate further, he noted that: '…there appear'd to be safe Anchorage, which I called Port Jackson'. The name was in honour of Sir George Jackson, Judge-Advocate of the Fleet. It was not until the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788, and their dismay at the barren prospects of Botany Bay, that the waterway was explored. To the delight of Captain Phillip and his weary companions, Port Jackson proved to be a far more suitable location for the new settlement, and on 26 January 1788 the British flag was raised on the shores of Sydney Cove, near the present site of Circular Quay. Tents were erected and this far-flung outpost of Britain began life. Port Jackson, more commonly know as Sydney Harbour, 'has changed a great deal in the past 200 years…the harbour is now busy with maritime traffic and is surrounded by docks and wharves, high-rise office blocks and a multitude of red-roofed dwellings. The 20th century has also seen the construction of two of the city's most famous harbour landmarks: the Harbour Bridge, completed in 1932, and Sydney Opera House, opened in 1973. But thankfully, large sections of bush and heathland remain and parts of the shore are under the auspices of the Sydney Harbour National Park'. As quoted in 'Thomas Cook Travellers Sydney and New South Wales', 2nd edition (1998) published by the AA.