Focus on Europe | Video Podcast | Deutsche Welle

An Egyptian investor plans to open the largest ski resort in the Alps in the sleepy town of Andermatt. Time seems to have stood still in Andermatt. But that may soon be a distant memory. Several months ago, an ultramodern luxury hotel opened there. And if Egyptian investor Samih Sawiris has his way, it will soon be joined by scores of similar hotels and vacation apartments...

Madrid’s street performers are facing a new challenge. A new noise reduction law pushed through by the mayor now requires them to pass an audition to obtain a permit. According to the city, one-third of the musicians didn’t pass muster at the auditions. Those that did also have to follow new rules, including remaining at least 75 meters away from other buskers. Madrid’s mayor, Ana Botella, has also called for a ban on downtown protests...

Monte dei Paschi di Siena is the world’s oldest bank, and it is on the verge of collapse. This development has plunged Siena into crisis.For more than 500 years, Monte dei Paschi presided over the city. For generations, the venerable bank helped fund charities and civic works, including the famed Palio horse races. In 2012 it was revealed that the bank had strained its finances past their limit and had been concealing major losses...

Monte dei Paschi di Siena is the world’s oldest bank, and it is on the verge of collapse. This development has plunged Siena into crisis.For more than 500 years, Monte dei Paschi presided over the city. For generations, the venerable bank helped fund charities and civic works, including the famed Palio horse races. In 2012 it was revealed that the bank had strained its finances past their limit and had been concealing major losses...

Madrid’s street performers are facing a new challenge. A new noise reduction law pushed through by the mayor now requires them to pass an audition to obtain a permit. According to the city, one-third of the musicians didn’t pass muster at the auditions. Those that did also have to follow new rules, including remaining at least 75 meters away from other buskers. Madrid’s mayor, Ana Botella, has also called for a ban on downtown protests...

Madrid’s street performers are facing a new challenge. A new noise reduction law pushed through by the mayor now requires them to pass an audition to obtain a permit. According to the city, one-third of the musicians didn’t pass muster at the auditions. Those that did also have to follow new rules, including remaining at least 75 meters away from other buskers. Madrid’s mayor, Ana Botella, has also called for a ban on downtown protests...

Monte dei Paschi di Siena is the world’s oldest bank, and it is on the verge of collapse. This development has plunged Siena into crisis.For more than 500 years, Monte dei Paschi presided over the city. For generations, the venerable bank helped fund charities and civic works, including the famed Palio horse races. In 2012 it was revealed that the bank had strained its finances past their limit and had been concealing major losses...

To this day, Spain’s legal system has not dealt with the crimes of the Franco era. A female Argentinian judge is now giving many victims new hope. Because of an amnesty, even torturers from the Franco era have been able to live unpunished in Spain. Protection from criminal prosecution was originally meant to facilitate the peaceful transition to democracy. Many victims, however, are demanding that the amnesty be lifted at last...

Michael Schumacher had one - and thousands of other skiers do as well: a micro-video camera mounted on a helmet. But the pursuit of impressive skiing pictures often leads skiers to take greater risks. In Europe's highest ski resort, Val Thorens, piste attendants have long been aware of a dangerous trend. More and more people are skiing in deep powder snow off-piste...

Austria is popular with wealthy Russians. The small town of Kitzbühel is one of the places profiting from its rich guests. Now there are fears that sanctions will scare away the Russian elite. To Reinhold Mitterlehner, Austria's Economy Minister, it's long been clear that sanctions are an own goal for his country. In the high season in winter, charter flights from Russia land hourly at the small airports serving Salzburg and Innsbruck. Last year, 1...