On 26th October, Austria celebrates its National Day. On that day, 10 years after the end of the Second World War, Austria declared its neutrality, a stance which characterized the country throughout the 20th century and which the country still prides itself on today.
The day is traditionally celebrated with a military parade in the capital, Vienna, and many state museums offer reduced entrance tickets. The Austrian Parliament also opens its doors to visitors.
What comes to your mind when you think of Austria? For most people it would quite likely be classical music, beautiful landscapes and Sachertorte. In fact, Austria is a country right in the heart of Europe which is rich in gastronomy and has excellent natural and cultural heritage.
Austria’s official language is German, but it differs from the standard varieties spoken in Germany or Switzerland. Austrians start their year in ‘Jänner’, they put water in a ‘Kübel’, they use a ‘Sackerl’ for their groceries and in many parts of Austria they eat ‘Erdäpfel’ and not ‘Kartoffel’.
We didn’t want to miss this opportunity to wish Austrians a happy National Day. If you want to improve your consecutive and simultaneous skills when interpreting from German, don’t hesitate to look for our German speeches on the Speech Repository.