Vienna Past and Present

• Weighing In: Vienna’s Street Scales

  This week, we step onto one of Vienna’s most curious bits of street furniture: the humble street scale. Scattered across the city in over 150 locations, these coin-operated relics have no real reason to still exist—yet somehow, they do. We dig into their surprisingly rich history, from imperial times to today’s random encounters with your own body weight on the sidewalk. Along the way, Stephen and Carmen have a small (but passionate) spat about the proper unit of weight (spoiler: it’s kilos), and we can’t help but wonder just how much Emperor Franz Josef’s muttonchops might have tipped the scale. For more, check us out on social media at viennapastandpresent or at viennapastandpresent.com. Reach out to us at [email protected]. We love hearing feedback and ideas. Danke!   LINKS https://wien.orf.at/stories/3301198/ https://www.numismatikforum.de/viewtopic.php?t=20435 https://www.derstandard.at/story/1231152644414/stadtteil-poppscher-kampf-gegen-die-fadesse https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000124660026/ewige-schwergewichte-die-oeffentlichen-personenwaagen-in-wien    

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• Arnold: American Attitude and Austrian Schmäh

  In this episode, we’re talking all things Arnold. After watching the Netflix documentary Arnold, we came away with a new-found respect for the man who went from a small town to global superstardom. But we don’t stop there—we dig into a few stories the doc left out, discuss what makes Arnold such a uniquely Austrian export, and explore the concept of Schmäh (that special Viennese blend of charm and cheek) and how Arnie’s got it in spades. Plus, Carmen and Stephen briefly revive an old dispute about the existence of smoothies in Europe. Come for the bodybuilding, stay for the schmäh.  For more, check us out on social media at viennapastandpresent or at viennapastandpresent.com. Reach out to us at [email protected]. We love hearing feedback and ideas. Danke!   LINKS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_Williams https://www.derstandard.at/story/2276076/schwarzenegger-stadion-duerfte-umbenannt-werden https://www.klippmagazin.at/spots-1/arnie-und-sein-stadion https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_Arena_(Graz)#Kontroverse_um_den_Stadionnamen;_Namens%C3%A4nderung https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/After_Dark_(magazine) Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6516300  

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• Vienna’s Snow Palace: Soap, Sawdust, and a Ski Jump

  Long before Dubai put ski slopes in the desert, Vienna had its own indoor skiing dream: the Schneepalast (Snow Palace). Opened in 1927 as the world’s first permanent hall for year-round skiing, it was the brainchild of Dagfinn Carlsen—a man who clearly thought no idea was too ambitious. With two ski slopes, a toboggan run, and even a ski jump, Carlsen envisioned competitions, lessons, and endless winter fun... all under one roof. The only problem? The "snow substitute" was a slippery mix of soap and sawdust that behaved nothing like actual snow. Unsurprisingly, things went downhill fast. Oh, and did we mention there's also an assassination attempt in this story? Join us for a deep dive into one of Vienna’s strangest and most forgotten experiments in winter sports history. For more, check us out on social media at viennapastandpresent or at viennapastandpresent.com. Reach out to us at [email protected]. We love hearing feedback and ideas. Danke! Links https://magazin.wienmuseum.at/der-schneepalast-1927 https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagfin_Carlsen https://www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at/Nordwestbahnhof https://finanzbildung.oenb.at/docroot/waehrungsrechner/#/  

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• Zeitgeist: Sausage stands and Football

  In this Zeitgeist episode, we’re sticking our heads in the sand and focusing on the real hard-hitting topics: sausage stands and football. It’s the zeitgeist we want to be living in. We explore the Würstelstand as a cornerstone of Viennese cultural heritage, and Stephen quizzes Carmen on Viennese expressions—only to question her credentials when she doesn’t quite pass the test (but at least she's impressed by his pronunciation). Then, we shift gears to American football and why it’s suddenly gaining traction in Austria. Sausage, slang, and sports—what more could you ask for? For more, check us out on social media at viennapastandpresent or at viennapastandpresent.com. Reach out to us at [email protected]. We love hearing feedback and ideas. Danke! Links https://www.patriots.com/news/austrian-football-association-announces-partnership-with-the-new-england-patriots https://viennavikings.com/wordpress/2022/09/american-sports-studie-football-immer-popularer-jeder-2-osterreicher-kennt-vikings/ https://www.derstandard.at/story/3000000235661/football-214sterreich-ist-europas-f252hrende-kraft-rund-ums-laberl https://viennavikings.com/ https://apnews.com/video/vienna-united-kingdom-unesco-food-and-drink-4627d1ebef3d4341b651a3017830cfc7 Vienna’s much-loved Würstelstand gets UNESCO recognition | Euronews Celebrations around the big event - The best Super Bowl parties - from free to deluxe - Vienna | Heute.at Super Bowl Parties 2025 - the coolest in Vienna and all of Austria https://www.stadt-wien.at/veranstaltungen/sportevents/superbowl.html#google_vignette  

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• Vienna: The Spy Capital of the World

  Why is Vienna considered the ultimate playground for spies? We start with the Habsburgs' surprising innovations in spycraft and how Metternich made “the walls listen” with his sophisticated network of informants. From there, we uncover how the city evolved into the espionage capital of the world, from its Cold War heyday to modern cloak-and-dagger operations.  And for those with espionage aspirations, we wrap up with some tips and tricks—just in case you’re looking to trade in your day job for a double life. For more, check us out on social media at viennapastandpresent or at viennapastandpresent.com. Reach out to us at [email protected]. We love hearing feedback and ideas. Danke! Links https://unipub.uni-graz.at/obvugrhs/content/titleinfo/213364/full.pdf https://greydynamics.com/vienna-a-city-of-spies-a-history-of-espionage/ https://www.thecipherbrief.com/book-review/viennas-history-of-espionage https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austria_and_Russian_intelligence  https://secretvienna.org/the-city-of-spies-about-viennas-history-of-espionage/ https://www.bmi.gv.at/104/Wissenschaft_und_Forschung/SIAK-Journal/SIAK-Journal-Ausgaben/Jahrgang_2007/files/Beer_3_2007.pdf https://www.derpragmaticus.com/r/spionage#:~:text=Spionage%20und%20ihre%20Technologien&text=Die%20Spionage%20richtete%20sich%20als,ge%C3%B6ffnet%20und%20wieder%20verschlossen%20wurden. https://www.bbc.com/news/10564994 https://www.wienmalanders.at/blog/unterwelt-wien  

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