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The historical heart of Vienna, the Innere Stadt (inner city), is the location of the Hofburg, the former imperial palace, and the mainly Gothic Saint Stephen's Cathedral.
The Innere Stadt was once surrounded by walls and open fields, in order to deny cover to potential attackers; these walls were razed in 1857, making it possible for the city to expand and merge with the surrounding villages; in their place, a broad circular boulevard was open, the Ringstraße, along which imposing new public and private buildings, monuments and parks were created.
These buildings include the Rathaus (town hall), the Burgtheater, the University, the Parliament and the State Opera, which was burned in 1945 and reopened in 1955.
Beyond the Ringstraße was another wall, the Linienwall, which was also torn down in the second half of the 19th century to make room for expanding suburbs; it is now a street called Gürtel (belt).
The Innere Stadt is not located at the Danube banks, but at the Donaukanal (Danube Canal); Vienna's second and twentieth districts are located between the canal and the Danube River; across the Danube are the newest districts, which include the location of the International Center.
Vienna is also famous for its parks, many of which include monuments, such as the Stadtpark and the Belvedere Park, with the Baroque Belvedere Palace; Schönbrunn, the beautiful imperial summer palace, has an 18th century park and the world's oldest zoo (1752).
The main park of Vienna is the Prater, which is located on an island formed by the Danube River and the canal.
To help locate places, Vienna's postal codes indicate the district number (see the list here).
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