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http://www.factsking.com/countries/liechtenstein/
A quaint country founded in the middle of Austria and Switzerland, Lichtenstein is the last remaining place from the Holy Roman Empire. It is a country that enjoys contemporary and industrialized living, being one of the centers of commercial and international banking. With close ties to Switzerland, Lichtenstein is also a prime spot for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter activities. They have wonderful mountain sceneries that are not just very pleasing to the eyes, but also great for biking, hiking, and other mountaineering experiences. The people in Lichtenstein have a unique culture that cannot be put into the same category as their neighboring countries.
Important and Interesting Facts About Liechtenstein
- Not quite as large as Washington, DC, Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked country situated in central Europe in the Upper Rhine valley of the European Alps. The country is bordered on the east by Austria and on the south and west by Switzerland.
- Liechtenstein is divided into a comparatively narrow area of level land bordering the right bank of the Rhine River and an upland and mountainous region occupying the remainder of the country; the level land occupies about two-fifths of the total surface area.
- Discover Liechtenstein on the wings of an eagle. The Galina Falconry Centre in Malbun offers visitors a unique hands-on experience with a golden eagle. Leaving Malbun, you will travel up to Sareis by chairlift in the company of the falconer and golden eagle. From the top you will then have the chance to admire the incredible flying skills of the majestic eagle as you walk back down into the valley.
- Malbun lies behind the southern Alpine ridge in a small side-valley of the Saminatal Valley. Thanks to its snow-sure slopes, the resort is famous throughout Liechtenstein and beyond. Originally inhabited only during the summer months, when it was known for its invigorating mountain air, the resort of Malbun was created in the early 1960s with the construction of the first hotels and a chairlift connecting the village with the Sareis ridge at the top of the mountain.
- Liechtenstein is the smallest German-speaking country on planet earth and the only German-speaking nation that doesn’t share a border with Germany.
- Vaduz is the capital of Liechtenstein. Beside the Town square was where you can find the Rathaus. It wasn’t very old, only finished being built in 1933. When the time came to decide on the style of the building, a competition was held where architects could put forward their plans. Liechtenstein architect, Franz Roeckle won the competition. The rectangular Rathaus has a tower and a German influence.
- Drei Schwestern (Three Sisters) is a mountain at the border between Austria and Liechtenstein with three peaks. It forms a natural boundary between Liechtenstein and the Austrian state of Vorarlberg.
- The Grauspitz is a mountain in the Rätikon range of the Alps, located on the border between Liechtenstein and Switzerland. The mountain lies between the valleys of Lawenatal (municipality of Triesen) on the north and the Fläscher Tal (canton of Graubünden, municipality of Fläsch) on the south. Both sides of the Grauspitz are in the basin of the Rhine.
- The Russian Monument Liechtenstein is a small memorial stone in the hamlet of Hinterschellenberg, near Liechtenstein’s border with Austria.
- The Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein is the state museum of modern and contemporary art in Vaduz. The building by the Swiss architects Meinrad Morger, Heinrich Degelo and Christian Kerez was completed in November 2000. The museum collection of international modern and contemporary art is also the national art collection of the Principality of Liechtenstein.
- The Vaduz Castle sits atop a steep hillside, high above the country’s capital. This castle is where the Prince of Liechtenstein officially lives and is considered a private home for the royal family and is not accessible to the public.
- Joseph Rheinberger, an all time famous musician and composer was born the son of the Prince of Liechtenstein’s treasurer on March 17 1839 in the capital village of Vaduz.
- Liechtenstein is the world’s major exporter of false teeth. There are even two false-teeth factories specialising in making dark-brown teeth, for export to countries such as India where people chew tooth-blackening betel nut.
- Liechtenstein won its first ever Olympic gold medal when Hanni Weizel won the giant slalom in 1980.
- Liechtenstein grew by nearly half a square mile in 2007 when some of the remote edges of its Alpine borders were found not to have been properly measured and a new survey showed the border to be one mile longer than previously thought. The extra area, equal to about 50 football pitches, means Liechtenstein now measures 99.7 square miles.
- Lichtenstein Castle Has a Nickname. The first is “Neuschwanstein’s Little Brother,” after Neuschwanstein Castle, the most famous castle in all of Germany. The second is the “Fairytale Castle in Baden-Württemberg,” again indirectly referencing Neuschwanstein Castle.
- Lichtenstein Castle is still an infant in castle years having being built between 1840 and 1842. However the grounds have a much older history. The original castle was built in 1200, but destroyed twice until it finally fell into ruins.
- Lichtenstein Castle is based on the Novel “Lichtenstein”. It was inspired by the 1826 novel “Lichtenstein” by Wilhelm Hauff.
- The country of Liechtenstein is so small that in 2007, Swiss troops accidentally invaded it after getting lost in a rain storm. They apologized right after.
- Snoop Dogg once tried to rent the entire country of Liechtenstein for a video shoot, and the main reason they said no is because he didn’t give them enough notice.
- In Liechtenstein’s last military engagement in 1866, none of the 80 soldiers sent were injured, and that in fact 81 returned, including a new Italian “friend”. The average citizen of Liechtenstein doesn’t even lock their door because crime in the country is so low. The last murder was 10 years ago (as of 2007).
- The Liechtensteiners are descended from the Alemanni tribe that came into the region after A.D. 500.
- The region now covered by the Principality of Liechtenstein was first occupied during the Neolithic Period and has been an independent state under the rule of the Princely House of Liechtenstein since 1719.
- Liechtenstein was formed in 1719, when the two small territories of Vaduz and Schellenberg were joined. The person who helped bring them together was Prince Joseph Johann Adam Liechtenstein. The two small territories were once a part of the Holy Roman Empire. Joseph Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein, died in 1732.
- Liechtenstein is a modern, industrialized country whose residents enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world. Most Liechtensteiners live in single-family homes, although apartment living has become common for young families who cannot afford their own homes.
- Several distinctive traditional customs are still practiced at weddings in rural villages. When the bride and groom leave the church following the marriage ceremony, they often find their way barred by a rope held by the village children, who must be “bribed” by the best man in order to let the couple pass. Further bribes may have to be paid later, at the wedding feast, if the children manage to make off with one of the bride’s shoes. Sometimes the groom’s friends even “kidnap” the bride herself, and it is then the groom’s turn to pay up.
- Their traditional costumes, or Trachten, are worn only rarely, for festivals and other special occasions. The women’s costume has a gathered waist, a full skirt, and an apron, while men wear knee-length breeches, a flat black hat, and a loden (woolen) jacket.
- Liechtenstein’s great cultural treasure is the art collection of its prince, which dates back to the early 1600s. Housed in the capital city of Vaduz, it is the second-largest private art collection in the world. It is surpassed in size only by that of Britain’s royal family. It is also one of the finest art collections—public or private—in the world.
- Although Liechtenstein is too small to have developed an extensive national cuisine, it does have some distinctive regional dishes. Käsknöfle consists of noodles made by squeezing a mixture of flour, water, and eggs through a perforated board. The noodles are then baked with grated cheese and a layer of fried onions and are often served with applesauce or a salad.
- Liechtenstein also has a strong musical tradition. Brass bands and vocal ensembles are common in rural areas, while the cities of Vaduz and Balzers both have highly regarded operetta companies.
- Historically, Liechtenstein’s major crafts included basket weaving, coopering (barrel-making), clog carving, and the fashioning of elaborate rakes. Today these activities have largely been replaced by the modern crafts of pottery, sculpture, and woodcarving, all areas in which Liechtenstein’s artisans have a distinguished reputation throughout Europe.
