My Erasmus Semester in Austria

The Austrian Political System - A Guide for Idiots. When we hear the word "Politics", we often find ourselves rolling our eyes and falling into a deep sleep over complicated structures and big words which nobody really understands... However, I have decided to take one for the team, and explain the Austrian political system in a way that is so simple, even the idiots among us will understand.  The Constitution. First of all, it is important to understand the structure of Austrias political system. Austria is a democratic republic consisting of nine federal states or better known to us as provinces. The country has been a member state of the European Union since 1995 and the federal capital and heart of the supreme authorities is Vienna. Similar to many other European democracies, the country's Chancellor is the leader of the party with the majority of votes.   Political Parties.  Currently there are five political parties represented in the Austrian parliament.  1. The Au

FIVE Reasons Why Your Next Holiday Should be in Tyrol  1. The Landscape Tyrol is one of Austrias most picturesque regions which is complimented by both the beauty of green fields and crystal blue lakes with snow capped mountains in the distance. This means that as well as diving into the world of gaping mountains and glaciers you can also enjoy the beauty of its valleys, lakes and nature reserves and discover the 800 years of history in Tyrol's many middle aged towns. This region hosts something for every kind of traveller. 2. The Giant's Kingdom  One of Tyrol's most grossing and visited tourist attraction is The Giant's Kingdom, also knows as Wattens-based Swarovski Crystal Worlds, Since its reopening in 1995, the attraction has amazed visitors from all round the world. The Crystal world is built as a subterranean labyrinth of small hidden caves under a park, children playground and gardens. You enter the kingdom through a giant's head.  3. Bridge into the Middle A

The Tragic Life of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Empress Elisabeth of Austria (24th December 1837 - 10th September 1899) was the Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary by her marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph I. She is famous for being the longest reigning Austrian Empress, with a reign of 44 years and for her  beautiful youthful appearance, which she fought hard to preserve.  Empress Elisabeth was born into the Royal Bavarian House of Wittelsbach, where she was known as Sisi for a lot of her childhood. It is believed that Sisi enjoyed her informal and relaxed upbringing before she married Emperor Franz Joseph I at only 16 years old. Much like many people who marry into royalty, her life changed drastically. She was thrusted into the much more formal Habsburg court life, which as a shy-natured child, was unprepared for. As the marriage and crown had a large impact on her health, the Empress often enjoyed her visits to Hungary, where she could enjoy a much more relaxed way of life. As w

  MA 2412 - Austria's favourite sitcom? MA 2412 is an Austrian Sitcom produced by Austrian company MR Film in Vienna. The show ran from 1998 to 2002 and deals with the everyday problems that come with life in Austria and portrays the difficulties in a sarcastic and humorous way. The show is named MA24 after the municipal departments of the City of Vienna, which are recognised by the letters MA followed by a two digit number. The producers decided to call it MA2412 because, the characters in the show work in the department responsible for Christmas decorations. Therefore 2412 means Christmas Eve. MA 2412 is a parody of the Austrian-Viennese administration and is full of clichés about the departments, civil servants and general humanitarian issues.  : HERE IS A VIDEO OF SOME OF THE FUNNIEST MOMENTS FROM THE SHOW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlPY1TJQnoI   MAIN CHARACTERS. The four main characters are Herr Weber played by Alfred Dorfer (right),  Frau Knackel played by Monica Weinzet

Falco & his legacy in Austria.  Johann Hans Hölzel better known by his stage name Falco, was an Austrian singer/songwriter and musician, famous worldwide in the 1990s.  Born in Vienna in 1957, Falco always knew that he wanted to be a Pop Star and showed great talent from a young age. He stated in an interview that as a toddler he was able to keep in time with the drumbeat of songs from the radio and at four years old he was gifted a child's grand piano where he would play songs from his idols The Beatles, Elvis and Cliff Ritchard.  Falco is now considered to be the best-selling Austrian singer of all times after selling 20 million albums and 40 million singles. He gained international fame with hits such as "Der Kommissar", "Vienna Calling" and "Rock Me Amadeus" which reached number 1 on the Billboard charts in 1986, making Falco the only artist whose main language was German to score a vocal number-one hit internationally.                        

 HUNGERBURGBAHN:   Innsbruck's input to modern ARCHITECTURE.  The Hungerburgbahn Funicular also known as The Nordpark Railway Station is part of a hybrid funicular railway in Innsbruck, which links Innsbruck's district of Hungerburg to the city centre at the foot of the Nordkette mountain range. The 1.84 kilometre (1.14 mile) route is designed for cable cars and has 4 stations: The Congress station, The Löwenhaus station, The Alpenzoo station and by far the most spectacular, is the Hungerburgbahn station at Hermann-Buhl-Platz. The stations were designed in 2007 by Zaha Hadid. an Iraqi-British architect who as well as The Nordpark rail station, had previously left her mark in Innsbruck with her redesigned Bergisel Ski Jump which opened in 2002. Hadid describes the design of the stations to have a "Shell and Shallow" look. Which is made obvious by the stations distinct, smooth rounded edges with a ripple affect.  In 2004, Hadid became the first woman to be awarded the w