12- VIENNA

Happy Sunday to everyone!! Today's post is about Vienna, a city of immeasurable cultural wealth. Enjoy it!

1- General information

Vienna, the capital and largest city of Austria, is located in the North-West of the country and in the heart of Europe.

Vienna's population is 1.8 million people, 2.6 million including the metropolitan area, which is a third part of Austria's population and makes it the 7th most populated city in the European Union.

The city, which was designated a World Heritage Site in 2001 by the UNESCO, holds several international organizations such as the United Nations and the OPEC.

United Nations

Vienna is known as The City of Music, for its music legacy (especially Mozart's). Besides, it's also called The City of Dreams for being the home of the first psycho- analyst, Sigmon Freud.

2- Landmarks

As the historic city it is, Vienna holds a wide range of monuments for visitors.

One of the major attractions in the city is Schönbrunn Palace. This 1,441 room-palace, built at the request of the Emperor Leopold I between 1696 and  171,  is one of the only examples of the Austrian Rococo style.

Hofburg Imperial Palace has played an integral part of the Austrian government scene since it was built in the 13th century. It has been home to some of Europe’s most powerful royalty over the centuries and is a worh-visiting monument.

St. Stephen’s Cathedral, also known as Stephansdom,is the home church of the Catholic Church in Vienna. Built in the 12th century, the church was destroyed in World War II but was rebuilt in seven years. The cathedral, one of the city’s most important landmarks, reaches high into the Viennese skyline. Moreover, its inner beauty is at least as marvellous as its outdoor.

3- People

Vienna has been named the World's Best Place to Live for several consecutive years. The study examined social and economic conditions, health, education, housing and the environment. Nowadays, German speaking cities are the ones which dominate this ranking, and Vienna has the second biggest number of German speakers after Berlin.

4- Food

Viennese cuisine is similar to Austrian cuisine, but it has its own dishes which aren't eaten in other parts of Austria.Thus, Vienna is most known for its pastries. One of its most famous cakes is apfelstrudel, a strudel pastry filled with apples which is simply delicious.

 Another traditional Viennese dessert is the Sachertorte.  This cake, made of two layers of chocolate which apricot jam in the middle, is a real delight for chocolate lovers

5- Films and TV Series

There may be some TV series' episodes set in Vienna, but I haven't found any series which is specifically recorded in Vienna. (if you know any plese write a comment)

But don't panic! There are lots of films (or parts of them) which were recorded in Vienna. One of those is Woman in Gold. This film, whose main character is played by the reknown British actress Hellen Mirror is based on the true story of a Jewish who left Germany in 1942 and now, 60 years later, this woman, who lives in America, achieves, with the aid of a lawyer, the case about her granny's paintings, which were stolen by the Nazis, is reopen. This film is going to be in television  in Spain soon (in Antena 3). Don't miss it because it really is worth watching.

Other films which were recorded in Vienna are Before the sunrise, The piano teacher and Museum Hours.

6- More information

Here I share a nice video about Vienna!

And, like on the previous posts, some facts about the city:

• 10 things you should know about Vienna
• 10 interesting facts about Vienna

It's all for today. If you have any suggestion to make, let it in the comments!
Watch out cause tomorrow's post is going to be about the only city of the list I've been to: Dublin, so it's going to be a more personal one. Don't miss it!