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| Vienna
Travel Guide |
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Vienna (Wien)
is a unique blend of the historic and the modern, so full of tradition
it can be read on the face of the city and with a forward-looking
approach it will surprise the visitor. Vienna’s role as the
seat of the Hapsburg Empire for centuries can be
seen in the wealth of architecture and in the city’s artistic
and musical heritage. Many of the world’s most important composers,
including Beethoven and Mozart,
have lived and performed behind Vienna’s Baroque
façades. In addition to this Baroque splendour, there are
excellent examples of the Art Nouveau (Jugendstil)
architecture that also flourished here.
The fall of the Hapsburg Empire, at the end of World War I, allowed
Vienna’s socialist undercurrents to come to the fore during
the Red Vienna period, resulting in numerous social
housing and other projects, which still play a role in the city.
Vienna’s occupation by the Nazis and subsequent partitioning
by the 4 Allied powers tend to be forgotten, as the city instead
focuses on its post-war neutrality and the glittering remnants of
its Imperial glory. This seems to be reinforced by the image of
older Viennese walking small dogs or eating cakes in cafés
but it ignores the energy of Vienna’s alternative and underground
scenes, whose members react against the attachment to tradition
in a way similar to their Secessionist counterparts before.
The original city that lay within the protective walls comprises
the First District of modern Vienna. Vienna is divided into 23 Bezirke
(districts) and the demolition of the city walls led to the construction
of the Ringstrasse and an impressive parade of buildings along its
length. The majority of the tourist attractions lie on and within
the Ringstrasse. Districts 2 to 9 are arrayed between
the Ringstrasse and the concentric Gürtel
(Belt). The other districts lie beyond the Gürtel
and extend into the foothills of the Wienerwald
(Vienna Woods), where Heurigen (wine taverns) and
pretty villages are dotted among the vineyards.
Vienna’s climate is generally moderate, although the city
can experience some heavy snowfalls and low temperatures from December
to March, as well as occasionally very high temperatures during
July and August. Summer, however, is usually comfortable with an
average daily temperature of 20°C, although heavy thundershowers
are not uncommon.
The city is not only the capital of Austria but also a federal province
as well, surrounded by Niederösterreich (Lower
Austria). Vienna’s location on the east–west trade route
along the River Danube played an important part
in its history, an empire that once covered a large part of Europe
was ruled from here. Even today, Vienna is the
financial and administrative capital of Austria and home to a number
of international organisations, including the United Nations,
and with the fall of Communism, Vienna is once again at the centre
of Europe. |
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