Learn some new vocabulary<\/a>, practice understanding pronunciation<\/a>, and you’ll be the king or queen of Osterreich\u00a0<\/em>(Austria) from Vienna to Innsbruck.<\/p>\n [fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In Germany, you say “Guten Tag”<\/em><\/strong> (Good day) to greet people. In Austria (and in Bavaria!) you say “Gr\u00fc\u00dfe Gott”<\/em><\/strong> (May God greet you). This greeting has its origin in the fact that Austria and Bavaria are traditionally Catholic regions. Northern Germans often don’t look kindly on this greeting\u2014they might respond with a sarcastic “Wenn ich ihn sehe”<\/em><\/strong> (If I see him), a jab from the more Protestant and atheistic North.<\/p>\n In Berlin,\u00a0you would ask for your sandwich on a Br\u00f6tchen<\/em><\/strong> (bread roll). Not so in Austria or Bavaria. In these regions, rolls are known as “Semmel.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n In English, we may pronounce “tomato” differently (“I say tomato, you say tomah-to,” as the old song goes) but in the German-speaking world, different regions have completely different words for this food. In Austria, tomatoes are called “Paradeiser,”<\/em><\/strong> while they are called “Tomate”<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0in much of Germany. Potatoes also differ from region to region. In Berlin, they are called “Kartoffeln,”<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0while in Austria, you’ll find them sold under the name “Erdapfel”<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(literally “apples of the earth,” similar to French’s pomme de terre)<\/em>.<\/p>\n In Germany, you’ll find bathrooms labeled “Toilette,”<\/em><\/strong> or with the British “WC.”<\/strong> In Austria, no such luck. In this part of the world, the toilet is called the “Klo.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Ready to eat in Berlin?<\/a> Say “Guten Appetit”<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(“Good appetite!”) and dig in! Ready to eat in Salzburg? “Mahlzeit”<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0is the word you’re looking for. Remember, knowing all the niceties for practicing good etiquette is important.<\/p>\n When I visited Vienna in 2010, I didn’t know a word of German, so I happily roamed the streets without understanding anything.<\/p>\n When I visited Bavaria in 2015, I stared at waiters and shopkeepers in horror, thinking, “What are they saying?”<\/p>\n The Bavarian\/Austrian accent can be hard to understand for someone who’s learned German in the North. The vowels are long and broad, and the cadence sounds more Swedish than anything.<\/p>\n The accent will be the hardest component of Austrian German for you to understand. You can always ask someone if you’re confused about a vocabulary word, but if you can’t understand what the person said at all, you’ll be in deeper trouble.<\/p>\n That’s why we recommend, before you go to Austria, that you spend some time immersing yourself in the language.<\/p>\n One way to do that is by listening to Austrian radio<\/a>. It’s a great way to instantly immerse yourself in the unique sounds of the country.<\/p>\n Another good program for immersing yourself in the Austrian accent is FluentU.<\/p>\n FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n <\/p>\r\n You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n1. Gr\u00fc\u00df Gott<\/em> vs. Guten Tag<\/em><\/h2>\n
2. Semmel<\/em> vs. Br\u00f6tchen<\/em><\/h2>\n
3. Erdapfel<\/em> vs. Kartoffeln<\/em>, Paradeiser<\/em> vs. Tomate<\/em><\/h2>\n
4. Klo<\/em> vs. Toilette<\/em><\/h2>\n
5. Mahlzeit<\/em> vs. Guten Appetit<\/em><\/h2>\n
6. That Austrian accent<\/h2>\n
![\"FluentU](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/NativeAd-German.jpg\")
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