The Austrian National Tourist Office once again organised a workshop in Israel where Austrian companies could introduce themselves to the Israeli market and meet relevant interlocutors and establish contacts.
Among the 30 Austrian companies were also some museums. I was allowed to represent the Leopold Museum. The interest of Israelis in Austria is enormous. Our country records 1 million overnight stays from Israel. The stops at the workshop in Haifa, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv were all very well attended.
At the same time as the workshop, Minister of Economics Martin Kocher and Secretary of State for Tourism Susanne Kraus-Winkler travelled to Israel. This resulted in important points of overlap. As a board member of ATOFIM, the Austrian Friends of the Israel Museum, I was able to introduce Minister Kocher and State Secretary Kraus Winkler to Director Denis Weil and Chairman of the Supervisory Board Itzik Molcho at the Israel Museum. From the Shrine of the Book to the impressive archaeological section to the Jewish life and related objects, the tour offered a small insight into the magnificent collection of this very special museum, which was founded in 1965 by Teddy Kollek, the long-time mayor of Jerusalem who came from Vienna.
The visit to the ANU Museum will certainly remain in the memory of the delegation from Austria. This museum, which has been completely renovated and its content revised in recent years, presents Jewish history and the present on many different levels in a vivid and understandable way, even for people who do not know much about Judaism. Neither Jewish humour nor the contributions that Jews have made to the prosperity of many different branches of knowledge should be missing here.
A highlight of the trip was certainly the granting of Austrian citizenship to Israelis whose ancestors had to flee Austria before the National Socialist persecution. Emotional moments on both sides.
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