The institution of the Kaffeehaus, or coffeehouse, is one of the most democratic public places ever invented.  Similar to the Melange, the most popular kind of coffee in Vienna, the Kaffeehaus offers a mélange of people of all social classes who come together to sit, read, write, and talk – all for the price of a cup of coffee.   Indeed, a guest who orders one coffee can sit for hours at a time reading the newspapers, typically plentiful in a Kaffeehaus and found in special wooden holders that facilitate one-handed …

Vienna, at the heart of Europe, is a city offering a unique blend of the arts, culture, music, and shopping, where 19th century Imperial traditions coexist alongside the latest trends.  One doesn’t have to go far to see a Fiaker (horse-drawn carriage) being passed by a skateboarder.
Tradition is everywhere, from the Kaffeehaus (coffee house) to ubiquitous paintings and photographs of Kaiser Franz Joseph I., the Habsburg emperor who ruled the Austro-Hungarian Empire from 1848 to 1916.
Vienna is one of the only cities in the world with its own cuisine (most …

Austria 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. Modern Austria dates back to the ninth century, when the name “Ostarrichi” (Old High German for “Eastern Territory”) was first used in an official document.
The country is known the world over for its music: Beethoven, Brahms, Haydn, Mozart, and Strauß (father and son) are some of the more prominent names of composers but Austria has more recent musical exports including Falco …

A coffeehouse at 35,000 feet
Terminal 1 is the busy home to 16 airlines. I found Austrian’s check-in area quite easily and checked in without any waiting.  The agent invited me to visit Alitalia’s lounge, where I watched a Euro 2008 match with a glass of wine and a salad.
BOARDING
Austrian allowed early boarding for business class passengers and within minutes I was comfortably ensconced in my business class seat.  The crew was very welcoming and I was offered newspapers and a beverage as well as an amenity kit that contained a …