10 Interesting Facts About Vienna

Vienna is the capital city of Austria and is used as a symbol for intrigue, mystery, secrets and knowledge. Established as the economic hub of Austria, Vienna holds the head offices of the biggest Austrian banks, businesses and insurance firms. Vienna is a city that is also considered to be a museum in itself. Vienna holds some of the most magnificent pieces of architecture and the city centre was made part of the UNESCO World Heritage List in December 2001. There are, however, some interesting facts that you may not know about Vienna. Without further ado, let’s dig into some of them!

Interesting Facts About Vienna

1. Vienna is home to the world’s oldest Ferris wheel. This giant Ferris wheel, named as Wiener Riesenrad, was established in 1897 as a homage to Emperor Franz Joseph’s 50^th year on the throne.
2. The world’s oldest zoo can also be found in Vienna. The Schönbrunn Zoo was host to the first natural insemination panda birth in Europe, in 2007 and is one of the only universal zoos to feature giant pandas! It was also listed as the best zoo in all of Europe in 2010.
3. Vienna was probably the setting for Cinderella as it is the city of waltz! Over 450 balls are hosted in Vienna annually.
4. People say that the newspaper is now obsolete. Vienna does not seem to think so! ‘Weiner Zeitung’ is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Vienna in 1703 and is still being issued! It is the oldest, currently surviving, daily newspaper in the whole world.
5. The delectable French Croissant does not actually originate in France! The croissant was a confectionery product that was created in 1683 by a local baker and taken by Marie Antoinette to Paris, making it known as French.
6. Speaking of the oldest establishments in all of the world, the oldest running stock exchange can also be found in Vienna. It was founded by Empress Maria Theresa in 1771 and shares of not just Austrian but foreign companies are traded there.
7. The largest cemetery in all of Europe can also be found in Vienna. The Zentralfriedhof contains over 3 million graves, including the likes of famous composers such as Gluck, Beethoven, Strauss, Brahms, and Schubert.
8. Vineyards cover over 1700 acres of Vienna. It is safe to say that Vienna is the largest wine-producer of all the cities in the world. Most of the produced wine is sold locally.
9. Of course, Vienna is forever associated with some of the greatest artists and composers of all time. Beethoven was one such composer who spent over 35 years of his life in Vienna.
10. Vienna has been acknowledged as being the birthplace of psychotherapy since 2000. Some of the most prominent contributors to the field of psychology, such as Sigmund Freud and Frankl were from Vienna.

Vienna is one of the most interesting cities of today, with an incredibly rich and varied history.