On Austria
"Austria" in German is translated as "Österreich"As with all names, there is a literal and figurative translation of this; while when refering to Austria you would say Österreich, it is also an adjective, taken literally it means "Eastern Empire".
German is a fairly old language, unlike English. Many of it's words and phrases come from the medieval period, when there was no Germany but merely an overweight and bloated "Holy Roman Empire" that was created under Charlemagne.
On the great emperor's death his empire was split among his sons, as was the custom: Most of the modern day territory of France and parts of the low countries were given as the westernmost part of the empire, and were given the name "frankreich", which is still used today to denote France.
The other parts of the empire were divided into a large portion of Germany and Italy, and a third border state that wound itself like a snake between the two. The eastern part of the empire expanded into Austria, which became the furthest part of the empire ever acheived, hence the name. Where am I going with all of this?
German and Austria are very similar, in language an culture, yet there are slight differences that I have noticed on my travels.
Austria it seems is given to a literal older way of life; during my stay in Vienna and Innsbruck most of the locals it seemed were much older, and most of the children that I saw were very young, likely the product of the most recent generation to come to maturity.
Things are much more relaxed in terms of attitude and language; I had some difficulty understanding the locals, no real problems but the accents were very strong.
Innsbruck is a fairly small city located at what I perceive to be a crossroads on the alps; you can easily make your way to Switzerland, Italy, or Germany, and trains coming and going to France and the Czech Republic were common. The mountains above and around were edicated to slow, winding hiking trails, suitable for the elderly on a afternoon's walk but hardly strenuous for me. I met some bikers and many couples on the trails, and in the city I felt that there was little to do in terms of a night life or people to meet; I had met some younger folks on my last night there, and they all showed signs of the rebellion of the American 60's: colored hair, piercings, wild haircuts, smoking pot, drinking, ETC. I know most of Europe has a relaxed policy on drinking, and perhaps I am merely not used to such things, but most of the kids were.... well, kids. 14 or 15, and drinking alcohol in a fair amount.
I must admit I was a bit uncomfortable around them.
Vienna also has an older feel, but in a different way. I was unable to see as much as I wanted, but the city is built in a concenric circle, and the closer you get to the center the older the archtitecture gets... usually. There was always modern high rises and buisnessess interspersed even amongst the royal palaces and older buildings. The feeling I got was a sort of 30 yr old traveler just come back from several years abroad: "I've seen more of the world than the lot of you put together. Lemme tell you a story..."
I did meet a very interesting californian whilst in Vienna. He was a histiory major, and had just finished his first four years. Very laid back, had a ponytail, and very good with a piano. Carlo was his name, and upon hearing my own story of what to do in Europe he expressed a lament about how he wished he had the wisdom or the time to do such a thing at my age.
I've gotten alot of suprised looks, especially when I was in Vienna, when I tell people my age. I guess this means I'm doing something right.