Halstatt

Halstatt is a village in Upper Austria (capital Linz, bordering Germany) in the Salzkammergut region. It lies on the south-western shore of Lake Halstatt. Salt mining has taken place there since prehistoric times.

Mirabell Gardens

The Mirabell Gardens (Mirabellgarten) surround the Mirabell SchloB in Salzburg. At the Southern end there is Mozarteum University Salzburg a renowned arts university specializing in music, drama and to a lesser extent graphic arts. There is also a playground (spielplatz) within the garden grounds. A statue of Nicholas Copernicus, by sculptor Josef Thorak (an artist with Salzburg roots) created in 1943 also sits within the grounds in the Zwerglgarten (dwarf gatden) and has been there since 1950.

The Salzach

The Salzach is a river in Austria and Germany. It is a tributary of the Inn. The Staatsbruche bridge connects new and old parts of Salzburg and crosses the Salzach.

Schonbrunn Palace

Is located in Hietzing the thirteenth district if Vienna. It is to the South West of Wien Westbahn and North West of Wien Meidling. It was the summer palace of the Habsburg rulers and is a UNESCO world heritage site. Directly behind the palace is a fountain of Neptune (Neptunbrunnen) and a gloriette, a raised construction overlooking the garden grounds.

Tiergarten Schonbrunn

Tiergarten Schonbrunn or Schonbrunn Zoo is located within the palace complex. It is the oldest zoo in the world established in 1752.

Richard the Lionheart

Richard the Lionheart is associated with the Wachau Valley having been imprisoned at Durnstein after a falling out with a Duke of Austria.

Melk - A Town on the Danube

Melk is an Austrian town in the Wachau Valley around 50 miles west of Vienna known for the 11th Century abbey above the town. It is renowned for having one of the largest monastic libraries in the world. It is a Benedictine monastery which follows the concept of staying in one place and shaping it sustainably. It is written as Stift Melk on maps in German. The Baroque garden pavillion is a special feature of the Abbey Garden which was opened in the year 2000. It hosts special events like International Baroque Music days. The Wachau region is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has been settled since prehistoric times.

What is a Type F Plug?

Type F plugs are two pronged plugs common in Germany, Austria and Netherlands, as well as Spain, Greece and Portugal. Also known as Schuko, it was invented by engineer/entrepreneur Albert Büttner in Germany in 1925. They are not used in France.

Pianos for the Aficionado

Bosendorfer, which hails from Vienna, Austria, is one of the oldest luxury piano makers in the world. Bluthner and Steinway are also famous manufacturers. Bosendorfer pianos were chosen by Franz Liszt for his concerts in Vienna.

Spectre (2015) - Big Data on the Big Screen

Set in Mexico City and Rome (including the Tiber River), Daniel Craig returns as Bond with Sam Mendes directing (following on from his direction of Skyfall). References to drones and big data threaten to obliterate the double-0 program but Bond triumphs in the end.

The film also stars former wrestler and MMA champion Dave Bautista (who will be starring in Kickboxer: Vengeance, in a remake of the 1989 kickboxing classic). In training sessions, Dave always does two to three sets of key exercises.

Obertilliach, Austria, the highest village in Lesachtal, is also featured quite prominently in Spectre. Silesians (originally from the area largely taken up by Poland) settled in the area around 1375.

Main Thoroughfares of Vienna (and The Third Man Connection)

Here's one map, and here's another.

Central Vienna (District 1 and Immediate Surroundings)

Stephansdom, and Stephansplatz is right in the geographical centre of the Innere Stadt. Stephansplatz tube stop is on the U3 line (Orangey Line), one stop from Herrengasse. Remember that a StraBe is a street, a Gasse is a smaller street which is narrow, and may only be available to pedestrian and bicycle access (and maybe also trams).

Here is a link showing the Gothic architecture of the Stephansdom.

Karlsplatz - town square on the border beteween 1st and 4th districts. It has its own Metro station, the eponymous Karlsplatz, one stop South of Stephansplatz (Red, U1 Line). The line goes South and ends in Reumannplatz (Favoriten District). It is near the Academy of Fine Arts located on Schillerplatz. Operngasse leads South down from Karlsplatz.

Praterstrasse - street on which you have two U-stations, Praterstrasse Wien Nord and Nestroyplatz. The Wurstelprate is a year-round amusement park with the ferris wheel mentioned in Graham Greene's The Third Man. It is open daily from 10am and each ride has its own price.

Herrengasse - is on line U3 and the closest station to Wallnerstrase. It is within Innere Stadt and its meaning is "Lord's Lane". The street existed during Roman times. Wallnerstrase is the home of the Wiener Borse, which is controlled by the CEE Stock Exchange Group (which covers the Vienna, Budapest and Prague Stock Exchanges).

Mariahilf Strasse - shopping street that runs between Vienna's sixth and seventh districts. Thalia is a big bookstore on the Mariahilf. Europaplatz intersects Mariahilf from the North near the Westbahnhof station. As Mariahilf enters the Old City, it first enters into Burggarten, a former palace garden with a large number of statues. Burggarten means "Castle Garden". This area is also labelled Museumsquartier. Heldenplatz ("Hero's Square") is also located in this area, which features a statue of Charles of Austria (Commander of the Austrian army, who fought against Napoleon). On the left, as Maria enters the City, it passes the "People's Theatre" a.k.a. Volkstheater. Continuing onwards in a higgledy-piggledy way, perhaps going via Dorotheer Gasse, you end up at Stephansplatz (the heart of Vienna).

Vienna Railway Stations

Wien Meidling station - located at Philadelphiabrucke (Wien 12). Brucke means bridge in German. Philadelphiabrucke is about 6 minutes from Westbahnhof on the U6 line. It is on the EichenstraBe.

Wien Praterstrern - is in Leopoldstadt. The Stephansdom is visible from the platforms. The original station which was built in the 19th Century was destroyed in the Second World War and the current station is a rebuilt version.

Wiener Neustadt

This is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria. Translated, it means "Vienna New Town".

Airport Connections

The city centre of Vienna is connected by bus and City Airport Train to Flughafen Wien (Vienna Airport) in Schwechat, roughly 25km away.

Austria: Its States, Its Economy and General Overview

Niederosterreich (Lower Austria), Oberosterreich (Upper Austria). South West of Wien (Vienna) is the State of Salzburg (Saltz-boorg). Tyrol (Tee-ROLL) is even further West (conquered by the Romans in 15BC). The most Westerly state is Vorarlberg. Note that Vienna is its own State, and holds 20% of the Austrian population.

Austria is one of the world's largest economy's in terms of GDP per capita, with Germany being its main trading partner. Its German name, Osterreich, means "Eastern Kingdom".

Some Austrian Terms

Austrian ATMs are referred to as Bankomaten, generally accessible till midnight, and with daily limits of about 400 euros. Wechselstuben, or money exchange offices, may have high charges. Mehrwehrtsteur is the name for VAT.

Burgermeister - Mayor
Volles Programm - Full Program
Wirtschaft - Economy

Famous Austrians

Erwin Schrodinger - developed fundamental results in quantum theory
Mozart - was born in Salzburg, now Austria, but then part of the Holy Roman Empire, whose first king was Charlemagne

Parts of Vienna

There are a total of twenty three named sections of the City of Vienna, known as Wien in German, which is situated along the Danube River (Donau).

Innere Stadt - District 1 of Vienna, is right in the centre of Vienna.
Leopoldstadt - District 2 of Vienna, named after the Holy Roman Emperor, Leopold I, is North of the Danube Canal. The Nestroyplatz station in Leopoldstadt was built in 1979 and is on Line U1.
Landstrsasse - District 3 of Vienna, in the East and South Eastern portion of maps of Vienna.
Wieden - District 4, very small district South of the City Centre.

These districts were defined from 1850 onwards.

The main railway station in Vienna is the Wien Westbahnhof (Vienna West Station). There is also a U station for Westbahnhof on the U3 and U6 lines. It is the starting point of the West Railway (Westbahn) for trains to Salzburg (300km west of Vienna) operated by Austrian Federal Railways (OBB), a.k.a. Osterreicheische Bundesbahnen, fully owned by the Republic of Austria.

Salzburg is 2.5-3 hours by train.