Places to visit in Vienna
Visit Vienna through the game
This trip will lead you through the streets of old Vienna in such a way that characters and urban legends will introduce you to the city through questions and answers. A correct answer will lead to the next point on the route and sometimes to several points at once. Even if a question is not asked at a particular station, do not skip it to save time. Stations without questions provide essential information for giving a correct answer at the next station. Also, carefully read explanations for correct answers. They also bring helpful information. Remember, you are not competing against another team but against time. There is no need to run or ignore the city surrounding you because only correct answers will advance you, and incorrect ones will stop you. In the end, only the game time and the number of correct answers from each player or group of players count, regardless of when they started the game or when they finished it relative to another player or group. Just pressing the start game button will start the timer. Do not launch the game before reaching the starting point, or carefully read and study the game's rules. Finally, and most importantly - enjoy the city and the atmosphere. Good Luck!
Hi! Here we start. We are in the centre of the modern city. It was born as a consequence of the accelerated development of the 19th century. In the second half of the century, the city walls were demolished, and in their place, a road was built encircling the old city called the Ringstrasse - Ring Avenue. The open space in front of us was intended for grand-state buildings. One of them is the palace which we can see on the right behind the entrance gate. Another palace was supposed to be built on the left side, but the First World War disrupted the plans, and the Austro-Hungarian monarchy ceased to exist. The square between the palaces, originally planned as a conference and parade square, became the speech square. Today it is called Heroes' Square. Let's go inside, but first, confirm that you have read and understood the game's rules.
Let's approach the guy riding the horse. First of all, his name is Eugene. His father was the king of France. By the way, not very smart. When he fell ill with necrosis, he refused to amputate his leg because it was not appropriate for a king to succumb to it. Finally, he died of the disease. The king had a mistress Olympia Mancini from Savoy - a region in the south of France. Eugene is the son of Olympia, and hence his nickname - Eugene of Savoy. The mother of the unwise king hated Olympia to death and demanded her banishment from Paris. She was thus expelled, but before leaving, she appeared at a ball with a revolutionary hairstyle that everyone knows today (photo). This hairstyle was even named A la Manchini - Mancini style with a parting in the middle of the hair. Eugene, son of the King of France, left Paris with his mother and became a national hero of the Austrians in the battle against the Turks when he was nicknamed the saviour of Europe from the Muslim occupation. Therefore, his statue is here in Heroes' Square. It was the classic Broco period that still characterizes Vienna.
Please look at the balcony behind the statue. From this balcony, Adolf Hitler gave his speech on March 15, 1938. Thousands cheered him from this square. Two days before, a referendum was held in Austria. On the voting bulletin you see in the picture, the big circle means "yes", and the small one on the side is "no". And here is the first question: What was the referendum about?
We passed through the palace courtyards and arrived at Archangel Michael Square. The church in the square is one of the oldest in the city. It is dedicated to Archangel Michael - the patron saint of Vienna. In the centre of the court are archaeological remains of Vienna since it was a Roman military camp on the border. Once upon a time, there were many cafes here. A life of cultural, intellectual and spiritual creation was stirred in them. Sigmund Freud liked to drink coffee in the house on the corner in front of the church on the other side of the square. Lev Trotsky played chess there. Hitler cried because he was not admitted to the Academy of Art. Stalin visited as an emissary of the Communist Party. So here is the second question: What does Tel Aviv's legendary Cafe Cassis have in common with Vienna's cafes?
We walked around the palace area and arrived at one of Europe's most famous horse-riding schools. It is called the Spanish school. What is the connection between Spain and the school? The Austrian royal house, Habsburg, is the largest and most powerful among all European royal places. One of his descendants, King Carlos V, was the ruler of Spain, Austria, the Netherlands and the entire Spanish world from the Philippines in the East to Peru in South America. He was the ruler of the world and signed documents with the words: "I am the king" without mentioning his name. These were Spain's heyday. But the king fell ill, transferred the power to his son and secluded himself in his palace with the parrot and the cat. He also kept the origin of the name Spain a secret. By the way, what is the root of the word?
Many relatives and descendants of royal houses lived near the palace of the most powerful European monarchy. The gloomiest house in Vienna stands on the corner of Augustinerstrasse and Dorothiergasse, opposite the commemorative plaque to Jan Sobieski. Elizabeth Bathory lived in it at the beginning of the 17th century. She is also known as "the Duchess of Blood". Her name is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the name of the female murderer of all time. She allegedly tortured and killed over 600 virgins to drink and bathe in their blood, believing that this would preserve her youth and beauty. Some historians believe these blood plots were spread to defame the name of the powerful and influential woman. But, the extensive evidence against her, and Bathory's own confessions reinforce the stories as plausible. The nearby markets of the city were the hunting ground for Bathory's servant, Pichko, who supplied young maids for the lady. He promised the victims shelter, food and security and invited young girls to serve the mysterious countess. At night, strange sounds were often heard from this house, but no one dared to ask the noblewoman what was happening in her home. Over time, the horrors and murders moved to Bathory's family castle, where she could freely torture her victims. By the way, stories about bathing in blood were later recognized as fictitious. However, corpses and tortured victims were found in her Czachatsky castle, where she was arrested. The power and influence of the Bathory family (relatives of the Polish king Stefan Bathory) managed to prevent Elizabeth's trial. Still, she was sentenced to prison in her castle, where she died four years later. To this day, the place is gloomy and repulsive.
The place became ruins overnight, and nearly 300 people were buried underground. Helmut Zielk, who was only 11 years old when the Nazis came to power, became the Minister of Education in post-war Austria. He first declared education as a national value and proclaimed the value of human dignity and freedom. Here in this place, he established a memorial site for the victims of fascism and the war. It is not only about Jews; according to Zilk, the Austrian national disaster began here when the Jews were forced to clean the street on their knees in the spring of 1938. By the way, he was injured in 1993. He opened a letter sent to him with explosive material and lost fingers on his left hand. After the assassination, he initiated the construction of a memorial to the victims of the Holocaust in the city. What did the Jews use to clean the sidewalks in Vienna after the Anschluss?
In this station, there is no question, nor is there a story. But… there is information. These were burial chambers of the Austrian kings and members of the nobility. Here the rulers from the House of Habsburg found their rest. By the way, Prince Otto von Habsburg was buried here in July 2011.
This square was intended for the new market that developed here in modern times. Office buildings and hotels surrounded it. To this day, behind the fountain stands the Ambassador Hotel, which is the former Krantz Hotel. Go to the hotel and look for which famous American writer stayed at the hotel and remember in which months.
We arrived at the Kartner pedestrian mall full of shops. By the way, they say that the prices here are more reasonable than the second shopping street of the Vienna Graben. One way or another, commerce has always been here, and the beautiful paintings of the hotel facing the street testify to that. It was a central street from the city to a beautiful and prosperous southern region. Kartner Street was named after this country. You can find out the name of the country by its international dialling code. It consists of three numbers. The first number is the month of Otto von Habsburg's burial minus the number of years of house arrest of the Blood Duchess. The second number is the number of months Mark Twain stayed in Vienna, and the third number is the second number minus the first. So what is the name of the country?
A station without a picture. Here the two shopping streets of Vienna meet. Kartner and Graben. A tree trunk with nails is placed in the corner of the house. There are countless legends about it. Some say it is a key to a mysterious space beneath St. Stephen's Cathedral. Some say this is the last tree trunk from the Vienna forest before the city was founded. Some say that people hammered a nail into the tree trunk before going on a long journey and thus asked for luck and success. You have to count how many nails there are in the stem. No, no! It's a joke. Just make a wish, take a picture and continue. An urban legend says that every wish comes true. When? The answer you can get in Jaffa on the street of the zodiac.
We reached the heart of the city. At least, that's how it's been accepted since the 12th century. Here you have to count the steps that go up the tower. I'm kidding :) No need. But concentrate and start reading the following facts very carefully:
- You can't see your ears without a mirror.
- You cannot count your hairs
- It is impossible to breathe through the nose when the tongue is out.
- Now, you have tried to do what is written in the previous paragraph.
- When you tried to breathe through your nose with your tongue out, you looked like a dog.
- You put a smile on your face because it's amusing.
- You skipped paragraph 5.
- Right now, you checked if there is paragraph 5 here.
- When a smile is on your lips, there is no better and more beautiful person than you! So let's take a picture and continue!
Is everything OK so far?
This statue was dedicated to saving the city from the great plague in the 17th century. The three sides of the monument symbolize the Holy Trinity. What is the Holy Trinity?
We are in front of the famous coffee shop in Vienna. Even more than that - we are next to Vienna's coffee culture. Julius Meinel managed to roast coffee beans so that no bitterness was felt. It wasn't easy to introduce the taste of coffee into the tea culture of Europe. The only ones who succeeded and succeeded wildly were the Italians and the Austrians. Italians with their espresso cup and the Austrians with Julius Meinel. Imagine that all this happened only about one hundred and fifty years ago. Tell me, how do Austrians name the way of preparing coffee when the cezve made of copper is filled with water, and finely ground coffee is added and heated in the red-hot sand?
You won't see me. Just listen because I'm in the toilet. Who hasn't been to the toilet yet?
In Am Hof Square, the city's largest and most beautiful Christmas market is held every year. It was the seat of the Viennese rulers of the Middle Ages. North of it, the Jewish quarter developed back in the 11th century. So that's where we are going.
This square has always been the central place of the Vienna ghetto. Jews were expelled from here many times and even before the final solution. Helmut Tzilk, whom we knew already initiated the construction of the monument. The British artist used a book as a central motif in the impressive memorial. What does the book symbolize, according to the sculptor?
A clock of the shipping company was used even a century ago as a source of pride for the company and an impressive street ad. To this day, it is a tourist attraction in the city. Each hour was dedicated to a historical figure related to the history of Vienna. For example, an hour is dedicated to Marcus Aurelius, a Roman soldier, emperor and philosopher who died and was buried in the Vindobona camp - in Vienna. By the way, Marcus was a close friend of Judah ha-Nasi and even wanted to make Judaism the official religion of the Roman Empire. Thanks to Yehuda ha-Nasi, this did not happen. Let's do a short numbers game. X in Roman is ten, V is half of X, and the letter M is X times C. Look for the year the clock was established in Roman numerals and add the hour of Marcus. What number will you get?
About forty years ago, this place became the scene of a murderous attack by two Palestinian terrorists against the Jews of Vienna who were celebrating a Bar Mitzvah. Thirty were injured, and two people were killed. The attackers demanded that the Jews leave Palestine and return to Europe.
Herzl lived in the Jewish quarter of Vienna. He wrote his famous book "The State of the Jews," and the commemorative plaque is dedicated to this. According to Herzl, it is better for the Jews to leave Europe for Israel. It will benefit both Europeans and Jews. We saw the irony of fate at the previous stop when the Palestinian terrorists demanded that the Jews return to Europe. Herzl figured out his idea of "liberating the Europeans from the Jews" to the German Emperor Wilhelm II in 1898. Where did this happen?
This is the old church of Vienna. From here, Christianity began to take root among the Slavic tribes that lived in Vienna at the time. It was the eighth century. German priests preached Christianity from Salzburg. The church is called the Church of St. Rupert of Salzburg. To the right of the front door, you will find a cross engraved on a white stone. What is the name of a cross?
This is the Great Synagogue of Vienna. Jews were allowed to return to the Jewish Quarter at the beginning of the 19th century. They weren't so scary anymore - they were reformed. The synagogue is not called the synagogue anymore but the temple. The Age of Enlightenment began. Adolf (Aharon) Yelink served as rabbi of the synagogue. His son Emil was a wealthy businessman and director of a German car manufacturing company. Emil's wife was from Algeria from a Sephardic family. The couple had a daughter whom the mother called by an affectionate name which means mercy and grace. Indeed, in the root of the word in ladino, you can hear the sounds of mercy. Father Emil decided to name the car factory after his daughter's ladino name. What is the name of the vehicle manufacturing corporation?
The walls of the house near us are the only remnants of Viennese residences from the 12th century. So, we are close to the end. The Jewish Quarter today is an area of the nightlife of the Old Town of Vienna. And one last question: Do you hungry?
An urban legend says: Ach, du Lieber Augustin (Ah, dear Augustin) is an Austrian folk song. Remember the column of the Holy Trinity? The song is believed to have been born in Vienna during the plague of 1678-1679. The song is attributed to Agustin - a mischievous singer and drinker. It is said that once late at night, Augustine left the tavern we are in now, and because he was very drunk, he fell into the pit where the bodies of the dead from the plague were thrown. There he fell asleep, and in the morning, when he woke up and came out of the pit, he scared people to death because they thought he was a zombie. So he had to prove his existence. For this, he is required to sing his famous songs. So his friends recognized him and began to shout: Oh, my dear Augustine. According to the records in the town books, Augustin is mentioned, who died on March 11, 1685, from alcohol poisoning at age 35.
