Vienna is a city of music, cafes, waltzes, parks, pastries, and wine, a true cosmopolitan center, where different tribes and nationalities have, for centuries, fused their cultural identities to produce the intriguing and, often cynical, Viennese.
From the time the Romans selected a Celtic settlement on the Danube River as one of their most important central European forts, "Vindobona," the city we now know as Vienna, has played a vital role in European history. Austria grew around the city and developed into a mighty empire. The capital became a showplace during the tumultuous reign of the Habsburg dynasty, whose court was a dazzling spectacle.
The face of the city has changed time and again because of war, siege, victory, defeat, the death of an empire and the birth of a republic, foreign occupation, and the passage of time. Fortunately, the Viennese character -- a strict devotion to the good life -- has remained solid.
Music, art, literature, theater, architecture, education, food, and drink are all part of Vienna's allure, all of which we bring you in the links provided.
The Fountain and Statue of Pallas Athena stands in front of Vienna's Parliament building. (©WienTourismus/Karl Thomas)
