Gold Coast
黄金海岸
在澳大利亚的东部沿海，有一处绵延42公里、由数十个美丽沙滩组成的度假胜地，它就是着名的昆士兰黄金海岸。
“黄金海岸”属亚热带海洋气候，终年阳光普照，空气湿润，一年四季都适宜旅游，但最好的时间就在每年的8月到次年的1月，那时正是澳洲的夏季，非常适合潜水。
黄金海岸位于布里斯班以南78公里处，乘车1个小时便可到达。布里斯班市内有公共汽车可以到达黄金海岸，此外也有火车可以到达。当然，你也可以自己驾车过去，甚至是乘飞机前往。黄金海岸北起South Port，南至Currumbin，这里除了景色宜人之外，最具特点的就是分布着众多富有趣味的主题乐园，比较有名的有华纳电影世界、海洋世界及梦幻世界等。在黄金海岸冲浪也是一项对游人极具吸引力的水上活动，此外你还可以到天堂农庄（Paradise Country）去体验澳洲最原始的生活方式，在户外喝着茶欣赏当地人剪羊毛的表演。
作为一个开发完善的风景区，黄金海岸的食、宿、行、游、购、娱设施较为齐备，各类游客在那里都可以得到不同的满足。
黄金海岸是澳大利亚的假日游乐胜地，这里有明媚的阳光、连绵的白色沙滩、湛蓝透明的海水、浪漫的棕榈林，来这里旅游度假的人们更为这里增添了不少生机和动感。黄金海岸的中心就是冲浪者天堂（Surfers Paradise），那里风光明媚，旅游设施完备，你既可以在太平洋中畅游，也可以在沙滩上打排球，或者只躺在沙滩伞下看看景色，想想心事。
来到这里，首先让人感觉到的是：这儿的人是那么开放。当然，这种“开放”与布里斯本、悉尼那种“开放”有着根本区别。另外，这儿还有一种阳光下的透明感。所以，尽管冲浪胜地是澳大利亚有钱人的别墅地，可在这明媚的阳光下，却分不出谁是有钱人，谁是穷人。而且到了海滩上以后，大家都裸露着身体，若是说有什么可比的，那只有年龄。
在海边，很多男女老少为了感受南半球耀眼的太阳，毫不在乎地展现着自己的肌肤，这时如果你很随便地打个招呼，就能加入到澳大利亚俊男靓女当中， 成为他们的一员。
The Gold Coast is a coastal region approximately 70 kilometres south of Brisbane， Australia that， over the past 50 years， has coalescedcoalesce v.接合 from a collection of scattered villages into a city of approximately 480，000 people - currently Australia，s seventh largest city - and Australia，s largest tourist resortresort vi.求助， 诉诸， 采取(某种手段等)， 常去 n.凭借， 手段， 常去之地， 胜地. The South Coast Town Council changed its name to the Gold Coast Town Council in 1958 and Queensland officially proclaimed it the city of Gold Coast on May 16， 1959. The mayor of the Gold Coast is the former Olympic middle distance athlete Ron Clarke.
The subtropicalsubtropical adj.亚热带的 climate， attractive surf beaches (the closest to Brisbane)， and savvy marketing have attracted millions of tourists domestically and internationally， and a large industry has arisen to support them. The narrow coastal strip is consequently covered with highrise apartmentsapartment n.<美>公寓住宅， 单元住宅， 房间， hotels， nightclubs， and the usual assortment of shops selling cheap tourist paraphernaliaparaphernalia n.随身用具. The area also attracts large numbers of retired people， although Tweed Heads is better known for this.
The Gold Coast is served transportwise by the recently upgraded Pacific Motorway， the QR CityTrain Gold Coast Line， (connecting to the Brisbane Airport Line) and the Gold Coast Airport. The local bus operator is Surfside Buslines， with CityTrain providing northsouth rail services to Brisbane. The Gold Coast Oceanway is a 36km network of pathways along Gold Coast beaches.
On Friday the 27th of May 2005， a Gold Coast bid team was granted a licence to form the NRL，s 16th team. It will be able to compete by the year 2007. A new multimillion dollar stadium is likely to be built as a “gift” with Queensland State Government and Gold Coast City Council funds， to be located near Robina Station. The team name is as yet undecidedundecided adj.未定的， (天气等)不稳定的 and it will likely play its first home matches at the current Gold Coast Stadium at Carrara.
To be completed later this year on the Gold Coast is the world record breaking Q1 tower. This will have the title of the world，s tallest residential tower at 323m (73 floors). This has taken the shortowned title from the Eureka Building in Melbourne， Australia. The tower will have a 10 storey observatory， as well as the fastest lifts in the Southern Hemisphere. It will also have the worlds longest spire at 97.5m. The world record most likely will be taken from Q1， by the Burj Dubai in Dubai， UAE， when completed in (estimated) 2008.
The Gold Coast is situated in the southeast corner of Queensland stretching from the south end of Logan City to the border with New South Wales. The southernmost town is Coolangatta which includes Point Danger and its lighthouselighthouse n.灯塔， and is twin cities with Tweed Heads across the border. At Latitude 28.1667 degrees south， Longitude 153.55 degrees east， this is the most easterly point on the Queensland mainland (Point Lookout on the offshore island of North Stradbroke is slightly further east).
From Coolangatta about 40 km of holiday resorts and surfing beaches stretch north as far as the towns of Southport and Surfers Paradise， which together form the Gold Coast，s commercial centre (latitude about 27.7 degrees south). The administrative area of the Gold Coast City Council continues north up to Beenleigh.
The major river in the area is the Nerang River. Much of the land between the coastal strip and the hinterland was once wetlands drained by this river， but the swamps have been converted into manmade waterways (over 260km， or over 9 times that of Venice in Italy) and artificial islands covered in palatial homes. The highly developed coastal strip sits on a narrow barrier sandbarsandbar n.沙洲 between these waterways and the sea.
The Gold Coast is one of Australia，s leading holiday playgrounds. With 42km of sundrenched beaches， World Heritage Listed rainforests， theme parks， shopping and nightlife， it，s the Coast with the Most.
Beaches
Head to a surf school， catch a major surf lifesavinglifesaving adj.救命的， 水难救生的 carnivalcarnival n.狂欢节， 饮宴狂欢 or build a sandcastle at the many beaches running along the Gold Coast. Some of the more popular beaches are Surfers Paradise， Broadbeach， Burleigh Heads， Currumbin and Coolangatta. It，s a major family destination with protected waterways and rock pools for safe swimming， white sandy beaches for long walks and a huge choice of attractions. You can even enjoy an island adventure. South Stradbroke Island is within easy reach of the northern Gold Coast. With nine times more waterways and canals than Venice - be prepared to enjoy some onwater fun with sunset cruises， sailing， jetski rides or fishing.
Hinterland