Cooks landing place, Botany Bay. Kurnell Point, Cronulla. NSW

Lieutenant James Cook (Royal Navy),born at Marton near Middlesbrough,England arrived at Botany Bay in April 1770, in HMS Endeavour. Stayed for 8 days,never ever to return.He was killed by natives in Hawai.in 1779 on Valentines Day. After a funeral ritual by natives in honour of the great man,COOKs remains were given back to the ships crew,for burial at sea. That place in Hawai -the spot where he was killed in Kealakekuah Bay is now officially a part of the UK-english soil. First Englishman to set fo ot on Australia soil was Isaac Smith,a cousin of Cooks wife,Elizabeth..Forby Sutherland a seaman,was first Englishman to be buried in Australia. The first Shire, Sutherlandshire was named after him.,the area now named Cronulla.Location- catch City Rail(MTR) Eastern suburbs-light blue line,from Sydney centre to Cronulla,leave rail station ,cross the road,catch 987 bus to Botany Bay nature reserve. Cost 4 dollars. Picnic areas,swimming on both sides of promontory/gift shop and museum in the Reserve. The plaque on the rocks is the exact place Cooks crew came ashore,the obelisk on the grassed area is a memorial to the founding/birthplace of Australia. Take a bus to the Reserve/or taxi from Cronulla station-have a picnic. Watch the aircraft fly over the Bay into Sydneys Kingsfordsmith airport.,sunbathe,have a relaxing 2/3 hours. Note- Cook was a Lieutenant upon arrival and departure in Australia- never a Captain rank. He was later promoted on another voyage.take some binoculars and watch the A380 s (Singapore airlines-Emirates-Qantas)flying low overhead on approach to Sydney. Australia Day-national holiday is celebrated on 26th January every year to mark the colonisation of Australia,by Captain Arthur Phillip,Commander of the First Fleet arriving at Sydney Cove on that date(1788).Sydney was named after Lord Sydney- the Home Office minister responsible for Prisons and prisonships.The flagship was called Sirius. He was Governor for 4 years,he died in Bathampton,near Bath. There is a ceremony every October in UK to celebrate and remember him,at St Nicholas Church,usually attended by the High Commissioner for Australia. .see website. http://www.stnicholasandstmarys.org.uk/australia_chapel.html see Cooks birthplace museum website http://www.captcook-ne.co.uk/ccbm/index.htm see Whitby,Yorks website-his early years http://www.cookmuseumwhitby.co.uk/james-cook/cook-in-whitby/ St.Mary le Bow, churc h London annual memorial january= http://www.stmarylebow.co.uk/?Latest_News see memorial at Bath Abbey = http://www.bathabbey.org/index.htm