Austria for me is The Sound of Music. It is the hills that are alive with the voice of Dame Julie Andrews. And Salzburg, where the film was shot, does offer specialty tours and trails for the Sound of Music fans (http://www.austria.info/uk/art-culture/take-a-sound-of-music-tour-in-salzburg-1135998.html). However, the Austria featured here is the present cultural Austria. My friend Marleen Paeschke kindly recommended a number of free festivals around Vienna that worth visiting.
Home to Beethoven, Mozart, Brahms, Klimt and Schiele, Vienna is vibrant city full of cultural experience and free festivals. A number of free annual outdoor festivals are held in Vienna by many different Austrian political parties. Although Austrians are aware of their main aim – to gain more votes – they are still interesting events. The best news is, they are free!
Stadt.Fest.Wien (The City Festival) offer numerous choices of open air concerts for free, with many snacks to go on every corner in the first district. Takes place annually in late may, it offers classical and jazz concerts at the "Michaeler Platz", one of the most impressive locations in Vienna. The Stadtfest is sponsored by the OEVP political party (middle-right...black party).
The Donauinselfest (Danube Island Festival) is an annual open-air free music festival, usually in mid-June (http://2011.donauinselfest.at/?lang=en&module=home). The largest open air festival on an island in the middle of the Danube, the Donauinselfest is also free. It is another festival sponsored by political party the SPOE (Austrians social party...supposed to be middle to left but acts more like middle to right wing). This festival presents international popular acts. Because of its popularity, it is normally jam-packed with people, so it is not highly recommend for families with young children.
The Volksstimmenfest (http://www.kpoe.at/home/kultur/volksstimmefest.html) run by the political left wing party (the only truly left wing party but unfortunately without any political influence). It is held in the huge Prater Park, with different choices of international musical acts. Although most of them are not (yet) famous musician, this event is very colourful and nonetheless appealing.
Among many more free concerts, happenings, events and parties in Vienna throughout the year, open-air cinemas in summer is one of Marleen’s favourites. This year, Kino Unter Sternen is going to take place 1st to 24th of July 2011 at Karlsplatz, Vienna.
The famous Austrian food is of course Wiener Schnitzel (Viennese Schnitzel), a traditional Austrian dish of an escalope (boneless meat which have been thinned out using a mallet, rolling pin or beaten with the handle of a knife) coated in breadcrumbs and fried. Although the traditional Wiener Schnitzel is made of veal, it is now often made of pork or even chicken.
For more information on visiting Vienna, go to http://www.wien.info/en
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| scenic view of Austrian countryside |
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