For the children of Austria, school is standard as nearly every Austrian child attends school, which most people view as being very important in the country. School generally runs from early September to late June or early July. Like most jobs, school begins at about 8:00 am, but only runs to about noon or early afternoon.
Evenings and weekends in Austria are generally only limited by time. Every individual has a different idea on how to spend this free time. Many Austrians love the outdoors and on weekends head to the mountains to ski or hike, head to a lake for a relaxing couple days, attend an opera, museum, or sporting event, or just hit the varied nightlife in their local town or city. Of course, family is also important to many Austrians so many of these events are family affairs. However, due to school work and after school activities evenings during the school year can be busy with activities for families with kids.
Identity
The Austrians identify in multiple ways, but primarily as "Austrians," which is a reference to the nation they belong to, not their ethnicity. Some however do define themselves by their local ethnicity, greater ethnicity (German), the region they are from, or even Europe as a whole. Despite the many ways to identify, the people tend to unite as one and see each other as one people, no matter how each individual identifies.