I was in an Irish pub in Salzburg called Murphy's Law (I was dragged there against my will, honest!), and the barman asked me where I lived. He winced when I said Linz.
Linz gets a bad rep. Sure, it doesn't have the Habsburg grandeur of Vienna, the Mozart and Sound of Music connections of Salzburg, the mountains and outdoor amenities of Innsbruck, or the student vibe of Graz. But it's actually a pretty cool city. If you don't feel like reading, you can end here knowing that Linz has enough history and culture for a city even twice its size, and a perfect location in Upper Austria.
Austria's third biggest city behind Vienna and Graz, Linz has a population of approximately 190,000. It's conveniently located slap bang in the middle of everything. Vienna is only one hour and fifteen minutes east, Salzburg is a little more than an hour west, Passau in Germany is sixty kilometres north-west, while the Czech Republic and Hungarian borders can be reached in under 3 hours. Due to the fact that Linz straddles the river Danube, you can easily cycle to Passau or Vienna along the Danube cycle path. You can even continue on to Bratislava or Budapest if you have the time and energy, although you should be warned that the quality of the cycle path deteriorates dramatically once you leave Austria. If mountains and lakes are more your thing, then hop on a train south and you'll be in beautiful little lake and mountainside villages in about an hour, free to swim or set off hiking.
Traditionally, Linz has been an industrial city. This is still the case today, but for the past 15 years or so, there has been a conscious effort to make Linz more of a cultural city. They're doing a pretty good job too, and this was recognised with Linz being awarded the European capital of culture in 2009. Despite it's small size, you can find something happening almost every night of the year. Small festivals are scattered generously throughout the calendar, while the ARS Electronica festival each September attracts participants and visitors from all around the world. The ARS Electronica center is an interesting interactive museum with constantly changing exhibitions. At night time its glass facade lights up and changes colour, sometimes to the beat of music. Directly across the river, the Lentos art museum does its best to mirror it, but with only two neon colours at its disposal and a lack of flashing lights, it can't really compete.
Sure, Linz has a dodgy history. Adolf Hitler was born in a town not far from here, and spent a large part of his childhood in Linz. During the Third Reich, Linz was conferred the title of Führerstadt, along with Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, and Nuremberg. There were huge plans to increase the size and prestige of Linz. This special status, along with Linz's industrial importance, explains why Linz was so heavily bombed at the end of the Second World War. And that bombing is the reason why Linz's old town isn't as big or as impressive as some other cities in Austria.
Another Adolf, Eichmann, also grew up in Linz. He was tracked down by the Israeli secret service, kidnapped, and brought to Israel from his hiding place in Argentina after the Second World War, to stand trial and be executed for his role in organising the Holocaust.
But it's not all doom and gloom. The famous 20th century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein went to school here. He was in the same secondary school at the same time as Hitler, although not in the same year. Johannes Kepler spent part of his life working in Linz, and completed his most famous work by discovering the third law of planetary motion here. The main university in Linz is named after him. The Austro-German Romantic composer Anton Bruckner was born in a suburb of Linz. While not in the same league as the other famous Bs (Bach, Beethoven, Brahms), Bruckner was described by Gustav Mahler as "half simpleton, half God". The Bruckner concert house and conference centre in Linz, along with the Bruckner Symphony Orchestra, are named in his honour.
Linz doesn't try to be anything it's not. Its nickname is "die Stahlstadt", or "steel city". In a country which attracts hordes of tourists only interested in Mozart, the Sound of Music, or skiing, this is quite refreshing. The only tourists you'll find in Linz are usually in the middle of their week-long cycle trip from Passau to Vienna. And what they find is an active city with amazing infrastructure, and enough restaurants, cafés, museums and parks to keep anyone busy. Yet, as you can see from the photo above, Linz shines brightest at night.
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