Yap Seow Choong

Yap loves design, travel and everything beautiful in life. He writes for various media about travel and design and has published works, including Wander Bhutan and Myanmar Odyssey. Formerly publisher of Lonely Planet (China Office), Yap is now Chief Content Officer of Youpu Apps, a Beijing based travel app company.


The Vienna way of living

12 2019 | Issue 36

“It is interesting, right?” a local resident in Vienna asked me, as he parked his bike by his side waiting for the traffic light to turn green. I was filming the traffic light with my phone. Before I could think of an answer to the pedestrian’s question, the traffic light turned green. “Have a nice day,” he said, riding his bike away like a breeze. The weather was nice in the city in the hot summer. People could wear fewer garments, removing constraints on their body. Because of that, the locals looked like they were enjoying their day.

I found the traffic light interesting because of the pedestrian signals. There are combinations of gay couples, lesbian couples, bicycle riders and pedestrians, showcasing the city’s creativity, confidence, diversity and tolerance. They are just like famous painter Gustav Klimt’s magnificent artwork The Kiss, a representative masterpiece from Vienna, leaving a great impression on the visitors in the city with a big kiss. The pedestrian signals used to be a temporary creative project aimed at promoting social tolerance and diversity before the Eurovision Song Contest. The project then received great popularity and praises from local residents and visitors, which subsequently led to the city government’s decision to keep the creative signal combinations. These signals are now some of Vienna’s most unique symbols. In order to make a city memorable to visitors, it is also important to refine details of the city just like the traffic light besides building up tourist attractions and landmarks. This could add more fun elements to the city’s urban planning.


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Vienna has been recognised as a World’s Most Livable City by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) for two consecutive years. EIU evaluates 140 cities around the world and determines their livable index based on indicators such as stability, healthcare and medical resources, cultural and natural environment, education, infrastructure, etc. This year Vienna once again tops the chart with a nearly perfect score. During my stay in Vienna this time, I decided to spend more time in having a better understanding of the lifestyle in Vienna instead of mainly visiting tourist attractions. 


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My Airbnb host was born and raised in Vienna. He told me that he would never leave this city since no city is better than Vienna. Compared with other metropolitans in Europe such as London and Paris, Vienna has just the right city size. The living expense in the city is also rather reasonable. People in Vienna generally don’t like flipping houses or buying houses. The most important reason that could explain this phenomenon is the fact that the local government has been building up public housing since 1920. More than 60% of the local residents now live in houses subsidised by the state. Local residents of Vienna can apply for government-subsidised housing if their annual after-tax income reaches USD50,000 (the local average wage is USD30,000). Housing rent is also strictly regulated by the government. The rent would usually account for 20% of the renter’s income. Government regulation also allows renters to rent housing as long as they want, which guarantees local residents’ access to housing.

When talking about government-subsidised housing, people would generally think they are of poor quality. But it is quite a different story in Vienna. The city has world-famous public housing policy and often wins awards in architectural design. Each building has its own design that is developed based on the preferences of the local residents and neighbourhood. Many of the public housings in the city have a big park and public space. Some even come with a library, indoor swimming pool and sauna. Besides buildings with modern design, there are also public housings that are converted from historical buildings that have been standing in the city for a century. These public housings with high quality ensure local residents’ access to housing while improving local life quality. This makes it no surprise that Vienna is able to win over its residents and set itself apart from the crowd to be the most livable city in the world.


My Airbnb accommodation is around five kilometres away from downtown, a 20-minute biking distance. Vienna has a convenient, efficient and clean public transportation network, providing commuters with options such as public buses and metro trains. Local residents use a public transport year card, which only costs them one euro a day. This greatly incentivises the locals to use public transportation more. However, I prefer riding a bike around. The public bike initiative in Vienna, backed by the local government, is incredibly successful. It allows people to borrow public bikes for free for half an hour, which is enough for local residents to commute around. Travellers can also borrow the bikes via credit card and bike through the streets and alleys of the city. I was able to save a lot of transportation cost because of the public bikes. Vienna has bike lanes with clear guide signs. Local residents that use bike for commuting strictly follow the traffic rules in the city. Google Map even provides navigation service and route options for cyclists. In comparison, Macao’s limited bike lanes are scattered around the city. This is why bikes, pedestrians and cars often have to fight for road space in the city. Vienna, on the other hand, sets up traffic lights specifically for cyclists to provide clear traffic guidance. You can also find inflator infrastructure for cyclists in some areas here.


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Vienna is also a cultural hub of Austria. The city had given birth to many art masters in history. Mozart, for example, found his stage in Vienna when he was young. Every year, a large number of quality shows will hit Vienna, meaning that visitors who enjoy watching art shows will be able to find something to see at the city’s theatre. Built in 1869, Vienna State Opera has an elegant architectural design and outstanding performance space. It didn’t take long for Vienna State Opera to become the city’s landmark and state-of-the-art performance venue. But in fact, it is not very expensive to watch a show here. Even visitors travelling on a budget will be able to get a standing ticket at the price of three to four euros. Visitors and local residents can have access to excellent spiritual enjoyment without having to pay a large sum of money. This is perhaps another reason why Vienna can make it the most livable city in the world.