NEWSLETTER

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8 Dov

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THE AMERICAN -AUSTRIAN CULTURAL SOCIETY

Patrons: John Cook & Christa Hellberg Jerome & Lisette Barry Harry & Annegret Davies Paula & Donal Donovan Dr. Peter & Helga Evans Martha Göbel & Dr.R. Meyer Karl & Helene Goller Dr. Joyce Hagel Elizabeth Hochholzer Ute & Karl Jahr Wilhelm Jonach Leon & Traude Knauer Amb.Hugh & Annemarie Montgomery Gerda Merwald Ingeborg Pr ichard Lynn Rhomberg Gary & Candy Ridgway Stephen & Monica Schott Ulrike Wiesner Gertraud Zangl Contributors: Franz & Ilona Aberl Vince & Hildegard Banes Henry & Caroline Beenhakker Karl Eiselberg Rune Foster Richard & Margo Franzen Helmut Jenkner & Rhea Arnot Fritz & Ilse Königshofer Christoph Mahle Michael Mertens M.D. Dr.Alfred & MaryAnn Obernberger Esta Sterneck Dr. Maria Wood Zoe L. Zaring

Since its launch in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has provided many new fundamental insights for astronomers and captured the attention and imagina-tion of the public. Austrian Helmut Jenkner has been intensively involved in the development and opera-tions of the Hubble.

Helmut Jenkner grew up in Vienna. During his early high-school years, a nearby public observa-tory channeled his inter-est in science into astron-omy. In 1974, he received a doctoral degree in as-tronomy and mathemat-ics from the University of Vienna in a special graduation ceremony –

promotio sub auspiciis presi-dentis rei publi-cae – wherein Austrian presi-dent Dr. Rudolf Kirchschläger

personally handed him his degree.

Except for a year as a postdoctoral fellow at the Ohio State University in Columbus, Dr. Jenkner spent seven years as as-sistant professor at the Institute for Astronomy in Vienna. At the begin-ning of 1983, he was as-signed by the European Space Agency to the Hubble project at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, where he still works to-day. Over the years, Dr. Jenkner has held several management positions in areas related to instru-ments, [cont. page 3]

April /May 2009

News from Austria

Speedier administrative procedures!

On April 14, 2009, the Austrian government decided to launch an anti-red-tape campaign to speed up administrative procedures. In a first step, a one-stop-shop procedure should be introduced for all contacts with the au-thorities concerning birth, marriage and death.

5618 Dover Court, Alexandria, VA 22312

Telephone: 703 941 0227

american_austrian_society@yahoo.com

www.americanaustriansociety.org

CORPORATE SPONSORS

Austria's Finest, ®Naturally

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Cook of Helco, Ltd www.austrianpumpkinoil.com John-Paul offers 10% dis-counts for members of the American-Austrian Society

For orders use

CODE AACS08

Designer/Editor: Gerda Merwald

Editor: Ulrike Wiesner

Hubble Space Telescope—

The Austrian Connection—Helmut Jenkner

On June 24, Mr. Jenkner will give a presentation on the

Hubble Telescope Mission at the

Embassy of Austria

Austria on OECD’s grey list

Austria, Belgium, and Luxem-

bourg have voiced their dis-

pleasure at being placed on

the OECD's 'grey list' of coun-

tries that are not yet compli-

ant with OECD tax coopera-

tion rules. The OECD has

published three lists of coun-

tries that are not yet fully in

sync with its rules. [cont.p.4]

Wiener Naschmarkt vs. Washington DC EasternMarket

PAGE 2 5618 DOVER COURT, ALEXANDRIA, VA NEWSLETTER

Many of us still have our favorite cafés in Vienna – the venerable “Landtmann” next to the Burgtheater, for example, where Siegmund Freud used to met with friends, the “Griensteidl” with its fabled literary tradition, or the more modest “Tirolerhof” behind the Vienna State Opera (my

personal favorite) and so on . According to Vien-nese loere, the tradition of brewing and serving coffee started as follows:

Twice the Viennese were able to ward off the Turks who laid siege to the city in 1529 and 1683. On the 12th of August 1683, the Turks at-tacked the city of Vienna vehe-mently.

The Naschmarkt is Vienna's most popular market. Lo-

cated at the Wienzeile over the Wien River it is about 1,5 kilometers long.

The Naschmarkt has existed since the 16th century when mainly milk bottles were sold (As Milk Bottles were made out of Ash (Wood from an Ash-Tree), "Asch" (German for "Ash") led to the name "Aschenmarkt"). From 1793 onwards, all fruits and vegetables brought to Vienna with carts had to be sold here, while goods arriving on the Danube were sold elsewhere. Nowadays, you can buy fresh fruit and vegeta-bles from around the world, exotic herbs, cheese, baked goods such as bread, kaiser rolls, and torte, meats, and sea-food. There are also a lot of small restaurants which offer e.g. sushi, kebap, fish, seafood, traditional viennese food such as Kaiserschmarrn or Palatschinken (compares to rolled up crepes) and stalls which offer clothes and acces-soirs. Since 1977, the market ex-tends further along the Wienzeile to an adjacent area every Saturday, when a flea market takes place there. The unique atmosphere of the Naschmarkt is famous far beyond the borders of Vienna, and large numbers of tourists visit the market every year.

Eastern Market, Washington,

DC, has long been an important element in the Capitol Hill com-munity by providing a neighbor-hood market for over a century and a gathering place for residents. The market, completed in 1873, was designed by Adolph Cluss, a prominent local architect who designed the Franklin and Sumner Schools as well as many other post-Civil War buildings in the District of Columbia. Typical of the commercial architecture of the period, Eastern Market is one of the few public markets left in Washington, DC, and the only one retaining its original public market func-tion.

The downturn of the market house after World War II further threatened the Eastern Market. When the DC Government moved to close the remaining public markets, Charles Glasgow, Sr. suggested he assume management responsibility for the market in the mid-1950s. Glasgow formed the Eastern Market Corporation and leased the South and Center Halls for many years thereafter. Recently a new firm, Eastern Market Joint Venture, has been hired to manage the entire mar-ket. In recent years, since the reoccupa-

[cont.page

2]

Naschmarkt at 1900

The Viennese Café

is so much more than just a place to drink some coffee. It is a phi- losophy of life, a beloved symbol of easygoing coziness the world over and intrinsically woven into the fabric of Austrian cultural life. To those of us who either grew up in Austria or have been fortunate to visit, the café is a comfortable, inviting, unrushed place where to meet peo-ple, exchange ideas, have rendezvous, study or read the papers. One of my fondest childhood memories was our family tradition of spending Saturday afternoons at our local “Stammcafé” in my home district of Landstrasse, reading the newest magazines and journals, relaxing and chatting about the week’s news. The grownups would have their “Melange”, “Einspänner”, “Kleiner Brauner” or “Schale Gold”, and we children were treated to ice cream and invited to join the conversation.

politically and commercially.

Eastern Market is located at 7th and C Sts., SE, across from the Eastern Market Metro Station. It is open to the public every day of the week except for Mondays.

tion of the North Hall by Market 5 Gallery in the (cont.) 1970s and it's ensuing development of outdoor arts, crafts and flea markets, the Market has served as a focal point in the revitalization of the Capitol Hill area, making Eastern Market once again a "town center," both

Hubble Telescope—Helmut Jenkner [cont. from page 1]

(cont.) Eastern Market, Washington, DC

Most recently, he led the science-related preparations for the

Hubble Servicing Mission 4 by the space shuttle Atlantis, cur-

rently scheduled for launch in May 2009. Dr. Jenkner lives in Bal-

timore with his wife, an interior designer. In his spare time, he

enjoys classical music and playing piano. He also likes a good

game of bridge, and cooks with great passion. Good weather may

find him on a golf course, rowing his skiff, or sailing his catama-

ran.

On Wednesday, June 24th, at 7:30 p.m., Dr. Jenkner will give a talk about the

Hubble Space Telescope at the Austrian Embassy in Washington. He will in-

troduce the various teams that make the Hubble run, present the most impor-

tant results and show some of the stunning images obtained by the telescope.

PAGE 3 5618 DOVER COURT, ALEXANDRIA, VA NEWSLETTER

Once again, the citizens of Vienna under the leadership of count Starhemberg succeeded in pushing back the enemy. Nevertheless, they realized that they needed help, so they nominated Georg Franz Kolschitzky as their messenger to ask Karl von Lothringen for help. Thanks to him and the Polish King Johan Sobieski, the Turkish army was defeated. Kolschitzky asked the city fathers to let him have the bags with strange-looking green beans that had been left behind by the would-be conquerors after their retreat, and to place a house at his disposal where he would be able to estab-lish the first Viennese coffee house and ply his trade as a “Kaffeesieder” [the Kaffeesieder guild exists to this day in Austria and holds its annual ball during the Fasching season]. The house, called “Blue Bottle” was located close to St. Stefan. There he roasted the beans, ground them and boiled them with water. The outcome – Kaffee, coffee, café – was a black, bitter beverage. One day, by misfortune, sugar got into the brew, and it was exactly what was missing. By some more experimentation, milk was added – and, as a result, the “Wiener Melange” was born. This was the birth of a Nation’s Passion for Coffee!

Or so legend would have it. The reality, however, is much more prosaic and complex, but by the middle of the 18th century, the coffee house tradition was firmly established in Vienna and in other European cities. One could read there newspapers, play cards, discuss matters of daily life, of literature, philosophy or the arts or simply ex-change the latest gossip. Many of the great literary figures are closely connected to the Viennese Café: Karl Kraus, Alfred Polgar, Peter Altenberg, Friedrich Torberg – just to mention a few.

In more recent times, the Viennese cafés had to face an uphill economic struggle: By definition, they are not fast-moving enterprises where the “bottom line” depends on quick turnaround. Quite the opposite is true: The café by its very nature and tradition invites people to linger and to relax. As a consequence, many cafés have expanded their menus to include light restaurant fare in order to survive.

Yet, the tradition lives on!

Ulli Wiesner

Schubert, Schubert and Schubert 2009

...plus

Haydn, Mozart,

Schuman, Dvorak

and Beethoven

And if you sometimes are wondering, where

your membership dollars go…..)

As in years past, the American-Austrian Cul-

tural Society was pleased to again support the

March 21 through 23rd, 2009 presentation by

the “Arts Connection” of this wonderful mini

festival of three consecutive concerts at the

beautiful Gaston Hall at Georgetown Univer-

sity, featuring the critically acclaimed Auryn

Quartet, double bass player Anthony Manzo

and internationally renowned pianist Mena-

hem Pressler.

These concerts have become a beloved and ea-

gerly anticipated tradition – and one of Wash-

ington’s best kept secret. Against very modest

entrance fees, music lovers are able to attend

three world class concerts, and this year was

no exception: The musicians’ joy of playing to-

gether was palpable, and they treated their au-

dience to unforgettable moments of musical

enjoyment. Ulli Wiesner

March Schubert, Schubert & Schubert Concerts

May 3 Wiener Kaffeehaus Jause

May 9 Open House, Embassy of Austria

June 24 Lecture, H.Jenkner: Hubble Telescope Mission

Sept.17* Annual Meeting

Sept.* Heurigen 2009

Nov. 21 NSAL Viennese Ball

Dec.6* St.Nikolaus & Krampus Children’s Afternoon

* to be confirmed

EVENTS IN 2009:

Your business tag line here.

We’re on the Web!

example.com

Continued from page 1:

News from Austria :

The first 'black list' names

countries that have not yet

made any progress towards

bringing their rules in line with

OECD standards.

Switzerland, Liechtenstein and

the three EU countries find

themselves on a second 'grey

list', which names 38 territories

that have committed to OECD

standards but have yet to fully

implement the required

changes.

Note from the Editor:

Very often do we discuss how difficult it is for the “Society” to compete with a vast offer of cultural events in the Washington Metropolitan area. However, with your help and input of ideas, we are determined to come up with interesting cultural programs, and entertain you as best as possible.

I want to thank all our members and friends of the American-Austrian Cultural Society for your continued support and loyalty.

With very best wishes,

Warmly yours,

Gerda Merwald

P.S. we will be mailing FY09/10 Membership Application Forms early October

in planning stage, member input is appreciated:

pls. call 703 941 0227 if you are interested in:

Additional children’s events [Fasching] Hiking/picnic Cooking classes