Australia is the unexpected: a land where the world’s oldest cultures coexist with giant ochre plains, trendy laneways, and breathtakingly blue lakes, as well as successive waves of newcomers from all over the world. Australia is a country, or Australia is the term for a land that includes several countries; understanding the latter requires following in the footsteps of the first peoples. You are on Indigenous land whether you are tracing the contours of more than 20,000-year-old rock art in Kakadu National Park, swimming in the azure waters of Rottnest Island, or appreciating the famous views of Sydney Harbour where the Eora Nation traded for generations.