Waidhofen an der Ybbs

Waidhofen an der Ybbs is an independent city in the Austrian  state of Lower Austria. The city had a population of 11,662 as of the 2001 census. It was first mentioned in 1186 and has been the economic centre of the Ybbstal valley since the 14th century.
The American novelist John Irving chose Waidhofen an der Ybbs and Vienna as the main settings of his early novel Setting Free the Bears.