Visit to the Hofburg

Girls’ Day: Little girls as great protectors

Two "Cobra girls" with a strict surveillance look during their visit to the Hofburg in Vienna(Bild: Klemens Groh)

28 schoolgirls paid a "state visit" to Austria's President Alexander Van der Bellen on Girls' Day.

"Girls can become and achieve anything" - under this motto, Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen invited 28 girls from two Viennese and one Upper Austrian school to the Hofburg for a "state visit" on Girls' Day. The girls enthusiastically took on all the roles and professions during the re-enactment of an official appointment.

Strict "Cobra girls" with large dark sunglasses scurried across the red carpet and admonished onlookers who had come a little too close to the presidential limousine: "Step back, a little more distance please!"

A young female journalist duo(Bild: Klemens Groh)

Other schoolgirls, on the other hand, practiced their skills as committed young journalists with writing pads, microphones and cameras. They took snapshots, captured the venerable ambience of the Hofburg with excellent video clips and didn't forget to portray the "First Dog", namely the lively mongrel Juli.

The invited guests around the President's desk(Bild: Klemens Groh)

In order to give their curious "state guests" a real insight into the working world of the head of state, Van der Bellen and First Lady Doris Schmidauer even invited the group of girls behind the screen door into the Federal President's office. There, the schoolgirls surrounded the presidential couple for the big state visit photo.

And what was the best part? "Being taken seriously by the President as a young person," was the honest, unanimous answer.