European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 18, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Danube diversion a dose up of the pests sule or plague pillar which was erected by emperor Leopold i by tween f 687 and 1693. Below the Entrance to the parliament. Continued from Page 3the history the relaxed atmosphere. According to Evelyn Miksch press spokeswoman at the Vienna tourist office some 2,8 million visitors spent More than 7 million overnights in Vienna last year. Heading the list of tourist nationalities were the More than half a million germans followed by the italians the austrian and in fourth place the americans with 216,000. Even by european standards Vienna is an ancient City with a proud and bloody past. Archaeological records show signs of human habitation on the site As far Back As 7,000 years ago. But it became a permanent settlement Arouri 800 . With the founding of the celtic town of Ledunia on the Banks of the Danube. Eight centuries later it was conquered by the romans and Over the succeeding centuries it was often a Battleground against other invaders from the huns to the turks the French the swedes and the russians. Vienna Rose to its greatest importance during the reign of the hapsburgs from 1278 to 1918. It was during the last Century and a half of this 640-year dynasty that the City reached the Peak of its political economic and cultural influence. The end came with the defeat of the Central Powers at the end of world War i. The subsequent dismantling of the Austro hungarian Empire left Vienna near the Eastern Edge of a shrunken remnant state named Austria in 1938 hundreds of thousands of viennese cheered Hitler after Austria was absorbed into the German Reich in the nazi anschluss. Fighting and Aerial bombardment during world War ii destroyed or damaged More than 100,000 buildings including the Cathedral and in 1945 the City was occupied by the russians and later the other allies. It regained its Independence with the signing of the austrian state treaty 10 years later. During the cold War Vienna became a Western outpost near the fringes of the Iron curtain. But because of the collapse of communism and the opening of the East it now lies at the Center of a revitalized Europe. The viennese character has been Analysed by everyone from Freud to Frommer and seems to be equal parts correctness and Courtesy Imperial Pride and a love of routine and simple pleasures. I think As Long As the viennese has his food and his drink he does t get upset so easily said Wolfgang 1 Scheiner who moved to Vienna five years ago from Graz. This Outlook has been become intertwined with Vienna s two dominant social institutions the cafe and the Herriger or new wine pub. Viennese Are proud of their past though their memories tend to be selective few residents you meet willingly recall the nazi years. Not everyone thinks this is a positive trait. I Don t think they re future oriented said Scheirmer. Some viennese Wear the City s history on their sleeves a Little too ostentatiously and have to be compelled into dealing with the present Scheiner said. Factors such As the United nations atomic Energy Agency headquartered on an Island in the Danube Are a help otherwise Vienna would Only live in the past and the past is Ever present in Vienna in its Art its music its traditions. But there is no aspect of the City that shows this More clearly than its architecture. From its religious and Imperial monuments the Stephan Dom St. Stephan s Cathedra the Homburg and Schonbrunn palaces to its More mundane structures half timbered medieval houses and Art Nouveau mansions the City s history is chronicled in Stone stucco and Wood. To a visitor this Eclectic mix of periods and styles is Eye catching and full of surprises. During a stroll through the City the setting can change dramatically from a twisting Claustrophobic alleyway to a grandiose Vista across one of Vienna s great squares or Parks. The combination of Large pedestrian areas impossible parking and a medieval tangle of streets Many of them one Way make Vienna a City that should be explored on foot. The excellent network of streetcars subways and buses makes it simple and enjoyable. Tha logical starting place is the downtown area. In Vienna this is the area within the Crescent of paries and boulevards known As the City ring and bordered in the Northeast by the Danube canal. This area formerly within the confines of the City Wall contains Many of the continued on Page 6 4 stripes Magazine february 18, 1993