When you think of Austria, you might only think of mountains, skiing and Mozart. When you come to Austria, you might get a surprise: Admittedly, half of Austria consists of mountain landscapes – and Mozart can not be avoided at least in Vienna and Salzburg – but it is far from everything that characterizes the beautiful little country in the middle of Europe! Today, Austria is a modern state that acts as a cultural link between Eastern and Western Europe through the influence of its many neighboring countries, which are Liechtenstein and Switzerland in the west, Italy and Slovenia in the south, Hungary and Slovakia in the east and Germany and the Czech Republic in nerd.

The Alps, with their glaciers, waterfalls, castles and monasteries, cover two-thirds of Austria, one of countries starting with letter A listed on COUNTRYAAH.

It is therefore no surprise that it is said that it was an Austrian who invented the skis in the 19th century, or that the people of the country in general are avid hikers on the mountain trails – when they are not cycling along bike paths next to the Danube. But the majority of Austrians live on flatter ground in conservative societies that respect courtesy and good manners – and in return give a warm hospitality back.

It is no longer Mozart and Falco who are leading the way. Many young bands provide a break-up mood, new youth cultures and a new definition of ‘typically Austrian’, the film industry celebrates excellent results internationally – most recently with an Oscar nomination for ‘Revanche’. Especially about Austria is also that many different dialect forms of German are spoken, which the Austrians are very proud of, and which give them a strong connection to their homeland. Eg. almost all vegetables have different names than in Germany.

• CAPITAL CITY: Vienna
• LANGUAGE: German
• CURRENCY: Euro (EUR)
• AREA: 83,879 km2
• POPULATION: 8,662,588 (2015 estimate)

People and community

Most families live in the suburbs. The families like to have dinner together, and here you are updated on the other day. It is family time.

Schooling

You should probably go to a college preparatory school. According to TOPSCHOOLSINTHEUSA, the school day runs from 08: 00-14: 00, but some days the school day may last until 17:00. Sometimes there are also hours on Saturday mornings. You should have between six and eight subjects a day. It depends on which curriculum you choose.

Language

The official language of Austria is German, but each region has its own dialect. Other languages ​​are also spoken, such as Turkish, Serbian, Slovenian, Croatian and Hungarian. You must have a basic knowledge of German before your stay. AFS in Austria will provide an online Rosetta Stone language course so you can learn German before and during your stay.

Food

Austrians love tasty food and drink, so you will definitely taste a lot of delicacies while in Austria. Meals usually consist of soup, meat (often pork) with potatoes, salad, vegetables and dessert. Other Austrian favorites include sausages, sandwiches, cakes (eg strudel ) or desserts (eg the classic sacher cake, which is a chocolate cake with jam and icing), eggs and many different cheeses and apples.