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About Austria

     Austria (German: Österreich) (Österreich (help·info)), officially the Republic of Austria (German: Republik Österreich) (Republik Österreich (help·info)), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It borders Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The capital city is Vienna.

    The German name Österreich can be translated into English as the "eastern realm", which is derived from the Old German Ostarrîchi. The name was Latinized as "Austria", although it has no etymological connection with the name of Australia (which derives from Latin Australis meaning The South). Reich can also mean "empire," and this connotation is the one that is understood in the context of the Austrian/Austro-Hungarian Empire, Holy Roman Empire, although not in the context of the modern Republic of Österreich. The term probably originates in a vernacular translation of the Medieval Latin name for the region: Marchia orientalis, which translates as "eastern marches" or "eastern borderland", as it was situated at the eastern edge of the Holy Roman Empire, that was also mirrored in the name Ostmark, for a short period applied after Anschluss to Germany.

    The current official designation is the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich). It was originally known after the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire from 1918 as the Republic of German Austria (Republik Deutschösterreich), but the state was forced to change its name to "Republic of Austria" in 1919 by the peace Treaty of Saint-Germain. The name was changed again during the Austro-fascist regime (1934–1938), into Federal State of Austria (Bundesstaat Österreich), but restored after regaining independence and the birth of the Second Austrian Republic (1955–present).

About Linz

     Linz is the third largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria (Oberösterreich). It is located in the north centre of Austria, approximately 30 km south of the Czech border, on both sides of the river Danube, the longest river of the European Union and Europe's second-longest (after the Volga). The population of the city proper is 188,968 (2001), and 271,000 in the agglomeration.

     Linz is an industrial city. The Voestalpine AG is a large steel concern (founded as the "Hermann Göring Werke" during WWII), and which is known for the LD- ("Linz-Donawitz") procedure for the production of steel, and the former "Chemie Linz" chemical group, which has been split up into several companies. This has made Linz one of Austria's most important economic centres. Linz is also the home of PEZ — makers of peppermint candy.

     Linz also serves as an important transportation hub for the region of both Upper Austria and, to a lesser degree, southern Bohemia. The "Blue Danube" Linz Airport lies about 6.25 miles (10km) southwest of the town centre. Direct flights include Frankfurt, Zurich and Vienna with additional seasonal routes added during the summer and winter months. The London Stansted route has been cancelled.

     The city lies on Austria's main rail axis, the so-called "Westbahn", linking Vienna with western Austria, Germany and Switzerland. There are also varying types of river transport on the Danube; from industrial barges to tourist cruise ships.

     The main street "Landstraße" leads from the "Blumauerplatz" to the main square. In the middle of this square the high "Pestsäule" ("plague column", also known as "Dreifaltigkeitssäule" (Dreifaltigkeit means Holy Trinity)) was built to remember the people who died in the plague epidemics. [Plague Column:[3],[4]

     Near the castle, which is located on the same site as the old Roman fortress Lentia was once built — and also being the former seat of Friedrich the III — the oldest Austrian church is located: Sankt/Saint Martins church. It was built during early medieval Carolingian times.

Other sights include:

• St. Mary's Cathedral (Mariendom), Roman Catholic
• Pöstlingberg-Kirche
• Brucknerhaus — the concert hall named after the composer Anton Bruckner, who was born in "Ansfelden", a small town next to Linz Brucknerhaus
• Gugl Stadium, is home to the LASK (Linzer Athletik Sport Klub), which is claimed to be the third-oldest soccer club in Austria.
• The Linzer Lanschaftliche Theater or Landestheater is the theater Adolf Hitler and his friend August Kubizek always went to, to hear Wagner.