Central europe - Trung Âu

Central europe is an area that forms the center of Europe. It includes the German-speaking countries, the four former Warsaw Pact members that have successfully joined the European Union, and Slovenia, a former Yugoslav republic, now also a member of the EU. Only Switzerland and the small Liechtenstein are not EU member states but have close economic and cultural ties to the region but also do not participate mainly for economic and historical reasons. It is a large and important region stretching from the Baltic and North Seas in the north to the Adriatic in the south. It is also home to some of Europe's and most prosperous economies and cities in the world. Finally, it includes the Alps that served as a transition zone between Latin, Germanic, and Slavic cultures.

nation

City

• Berlin - capital of reunified Germany since 1990, split in two during the 45-year Cold War, it has emerged as a rapidly growing regional and international cultural center since the fall of the Berlin Wall.
• Bratislava - political, cultural and economic center of Slovakia with beautiful historic buildings in the old town.
• Budapest - the city is rich in great architecture, culture and its famous thermal baths, as well as one of the oldest metro systems in the world.
• Geneva - an affluent urban banking hub that is home to many international bodies such as the Red Cross and the United Nations.
• Ljubljana - the picturesque high-altitude capital of Slovenia, a charming baroque city with stunning architecture and vibrant nightlife.
• Munich - capital of southern Germany, the state of Bavaria, this gateway to the Alps is famous for its carnival Oktoberfest, the largest beer festival in the world.
• Prague - one of Europe's most fascinating and well-preserved major cities and has emerged as an alien melting pot since the opening of the Iron Curtain.
• Vien - the elegant capital of Austria, it has a wealth of classical attractions and is often referred to as the city of the arts.
• Warsaw - The political and business center of Poland with a completely rebuilt old city and square castle.

Other destinations

• Alps - perhaps one of the most important winter destinations in the world, it's home to summer resorts too
• Baltic Beach - Germany and Poland part of the Baltic coast of Central Europe with hundreds of miles of beaches and sandy resorts
• Białowieża . National Park - a large area of ​​ancient forest in Poland designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Black Forest - a small mountain range in southwestern Germany famous for its landscapes and history
• East Frisian Islands - Germany has many tourist islands in the North Sea
• Lake Balaton - This scenic lake of Hungary is the largest lake in Central Europe and a year-round tourist center
• Neuschwanstein Castle - Famous fairy castles in the Bavarian Alps in Germany
• Romantic Road - a popular tourist route through historic towns and romantic castles in southern Germany
• Vysoke Tatry - beautiful and unspoiled mountain range reaching a peak of 2,600 meters above sea level

overview

While ethnically distinct, the countries of Central Europe share a similar culture and history through the ages. Two of the most important political units in the region were Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Before these two units in the Middle Ages was the Holy Roman Empire, a patchwork of states and sub-states whose magnitude varied over time. Ethnic conflict was a major problem for hundreds of years in Central Europe and culminated in the horrors of World War II. With the peaceful reunification of Germany and the recent expansion of the EU to include former Warsaw Pact states in the region, this issue seems to have finally been resolved.

It is a common mistake among outsiders to call all the former Warsaw Pact countries in the region Eastern Europe. Almost uniformly, the inhabitants of Central Europe would be flattered and pleased if you correctly described their country as "the heart of Europe" both geographically and culturally. Conversely, they can get upset if you fall into the Cold War stereotype. East and West Germany are countries, so it is better to call them east Germany and west Germany. Remember that Germans are German but Austrians, Liechtensteiners and most Swiss and Luxembourgers speak German, but they are not German! Czechs, Poles or Slovaks may seem similar to Russians, but residents of these countries will be uncomfortable with the assumption of cultural overlap. Finally, remember that the Czech Republic and Slovakia were once a Czechoslovakia, and Slovak people in general are very proud of their new-found independence.

While they are not currently considered part of Central Europe, western Ukraine, Transylvania, Kaliningrad Oblast (Russia), Alsace and parts of Lorraine (France), and South Tyrol/Alto Adige province (Italy), also sometimes referred to as Central Europe. This is due to the past and present ethnic makeup of these countries and/or previous political histories. The province of Kaliningrad spent most of its history as a German-speaking region and South Tirol remains a predominantly German-speaking region in northern Italy maintaining strong cultural ties with Austria. Although Ukraine is primarily an orthodox country, its western part was for many centuries part of Poland-Lithuania and later transitioned to Austria-Hungary which to some extent was cultural. unique.

Language

Central Europe, due to its rich heritage, is home to many languages. Some languages ​​have national status and are taught in schools and widely used in the media. However these other languages ​​are only vernacular or ethnic minority languages ​​and are therefore sadly in danger of eventual extinction although efforts are underway to try to preserve them.

German has the largest number of native speakers in the region and acts as the "official" monolingual languages ​​of Austria, Germany and Liechtenstein. In Switzerland, German is the mother tongue of two-thirds of the population and the main language of the four official Swiss languages ​​(German, French, Italian and Romansh). There is a small German-speaking minority found in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. It is also spoken outside Central Europe in eastern Belgium and France, and northern Italy (mainly in the Southern Tyrol/Alto Adige region). German can be very diverse and appears in many different colorful dialects especially in the South Germanic speaking world (southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and South Tyrol) is traditional and local is still strong.

Czech and Slovak are very closely related and mutually intelligible. The Sorbian language spoken in eastern Germany near the Polish border is also a close relative.

Polish is the main language in all regions of Poland. Kashubian, a regional Slavic language, is spoken in the area around Gdansk in Pomerania in northern Poland. Silesian is a regional language/dialect, (depending on who you ask) found in southwestern Poland.

Hungarian is one of the hardest languages ​​for other Europeans to learn, as it comes from a different language family and is related to Finnish and Estonian. There are 5 million Hungarian speakers living in Hungary in neighboring countries such as Romania (Transylvania), northern Serbia, and eastern and southern Austria Slovakia.

French and Italian are spoken by the majority of people in the southern and western regions of Switzerland, while Swiss German is often taught as a second language. France plays a historical role in the high mountains of Northern Italy in the French border region.

In the Swiss cantons of Graubünden or Grison, Romansh is spoken as a regional language. Almost all Romansh speakers speak either Swiss German and/or Italian as well. It is closely related to Ladin spoken in a few mountain valleys of Northern Italy and is an endangered language in the region. Sadly it is being replaced by German or Italian.

Slovenian is the official language of Slovenia, but it is also the language of ethnic minorities in southern Slovenian Austria, northeastern Italy and western Hungary. There is also a small minority in the Austrian Burgenland Croatia. Sorbian, Frisian and Low German are the three indigenous ethnic languages ​​of Germany with the exception of Roma. Sorbian is related to Polish and Czech and can be spoken in both the eastern states of Saxony and Brandenburg. All Sorbians speak German as well and the current President Minister (Governor) of the German state of Saxony is even Sorbian! Frisian is related to English and Dutch and is spoken by very small minorities in Schleswig-Holstein and Nuremberg and communities in the Netherlands.

Finally, Low German is spoken by rural communities or as a second language by a handful of the most federal states of northern Germany and still has a significant role in the states. the cities of Bremen, Hamburg and Luebeck and in the states of Nuremberg, Schleswig-Holstein and especially in the eastern part of the federation, the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. All three German minority languages ​​are endangered. Efforts are underway to preserve their language and culture, but it seems to be a losing battle.

Finding people who speak and understand English is not a problem in most parts of Central Europe, especially in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. In Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic, English is widely spoken in large cities and by young people, and German and Russian are also spoken and understood by many elderly people in these countries. . Russian, since the end of the Cold War and the unification of Europe is in steady decline. German is still important today, more for financial and economic reasons than for cultural or political reasons, as was the case in the past. Slovenians and Swiss by far lead the region in terms of multilingualism.

Arrive

Central Europe is very well connected with Europe, with the rest of the world. Germany, Austria and Switzerland are especially famous for their efficient and fast transport infrastructure, even small villages often have modern bus routes and sometimes even by train!

By plane

The largest gateway for air traffic is Frankfurt Main Airport in central Germany provides connections to all continents and most airports in Europe. Zurich, Munich and Vien The airport is a lot smaller but offers good connections to selected regional and international destinations.

A difference between national airlines and low cost airlines is a low-cost airline that can fly to an airport far from the city it serves. National airlines usually fly to nearby airport, such as Frankfurt/Main, while low cost airlines like Ryanair fly to Frankfurt airport-Haha, two hours away from Frankfurt city and really close to Trier.

Train

Central Europe has a dense network of high-speed trains:

• InterCityExpress (ICE) offers connections throughout Germany, but also works in partnership with Danish, Austrian and Dutch railways.
• French TGVs connect France with Geneva, Berne, Basel and Zurich. There are also connections to Karlsruhe, Stuttgart and Frankfurt.
• Thalys train connecting Cologne with Brussels and Paris
• RailJet connects Vienna with Zurich, Munich and Budapest.
• Pendolinos run within Slovenia and the Czech Republic has contact with neighboring countries.

In addition, there are many other fast and frequent nights and trains that connect Central Europe with the rest of mainland Europe, and go as far as Istanbul nice Moscow. Check out the homepage of the Deutsche Bahn [1], which has a great overview of the European railway system.

By car

The highways in Central Europe are excellent and provide fast connections in the region. The European Union has spent a large amount of money on improving transport connections. Check each country's pages for details on recommended routes and itineraries.

Contact

This tutorial is just an outline, so it needs more information. Have the courage to modify and develop it !