Thursday, July 18, 2024
We both woke up at 4:30am today and used the bathroom and celebrated that we got to go back to bed for three more hours. The bus to the airport was loading at 5:30 and we could have been getting up for the day. We had a leisurely time getting ready and enjoying our final breakfast of made to order omelets, caramel muffins, chocolate croissants, endless fruit, and, well, about 50 other things. The elevator to the RER (regional train) that would take us to the airport was literally right outside the front door of our hotel. It took about 45 minutes and 23 euro. We went to a tiny terminal and were very early. Security was about 8 people deep, so it was an easy in. There was a main waiting area, then when they announced your gate, you headed to it. We missed it for a while, because I think we thought we were just there to rest and nap. We got to the gate (the farthest away) and realized there are no bathrooms in that part of the terminal. We had to hurry back UP a really long ramp and across the main part of the waiting area and scurry back, since we were beyond the “be here by 12:15” part of the day. Everyone was still standing there where we left them. Our whole loading, and flying, and everything took an hour – and then we were in Luxembourg.
Public transportation is free in Luxembourg, so we hopped on the #6 bus and headed downtown. It was modern, then it looked medieval, then it looked old. We are in the sort of old part. We have an apartment on a busy pedestrian shopping street, in a busy pedestrian shopping area. There is a Cartier store on the opposite corner. We got a code to get into the building – took our tiny (TINY) elevator (Keith was actually that close while we were in the elevator) – and got a code into our apartment.
It is so nice. We have comfy chairs (with art), a bed and desk area, a shower that is just behind the wall, separate toilet room, and a kitchen – complete with refrigerator with soda, a washing machine doing our laundry, butter warming on the counter, and everything else we could need. (I used a cork screw to open a package of wine gums. They aren’t Sainsbury’s, but they were okay.)
We were hungry after our travels and looked at menus on our phones. We found a Georgian restaurant that had some good sounding things (chkmenuli for me), but changed it up and picked classic Luxembourgian food. They have quite a lot of dishes listed online as “classic”. I had kniddelen mat speck – dumplings with bacon in a cream sauce. It was good. Keith had the country dish Judd mat Gaardebounen – pork with broad beans and potatoes. He loved it. We asked our waitress what language we should greet people in, since the official languages are Luxembourgish, French, and German. There are lots of signs around that I can read and it feels SO GOOD not to be completely lost (or dependent on our phones). She said she doesn’t know Luxembourgish, because it is too hard. She knows a little French and mostly speaks English. Okay…clears that right up.
A block from our house is a regular car road that has a pretty view. We walked along, then wandered into the nearby Notre Dame Cathedral. It didn’t look like much on the outside, but on the inside, it was really pretty – so much stained glass – and so many organ pipes! The cornerstone is from 1613. It was added onto in 1935-8. Weird to think they were adding on to their historic church and in only a year the Germans would occupy the neutral country.
There were lots of fun things to see while we were window shopping.
We ended up in a Monoprix. We had seen many of them in Paris – we thought they were grocery stores. And they are, but also department stores. I ended up trying on dresses for a while, because they had geometric black and white ones that I thought were cool, and let’s face it, having a dress from Luxembourg sounds good. “Where did you get that?” “Luxembourg.” Yep, it sounds cool. I would not mention it was 30 euro and from a kind of a grocery store. It didn’t really fit right and I gave up.
We were shopping for some apartment staples. Soda and chips and breakfast. We had some great chips in France, but they had nothing like them here. Darn. We got Fanta citrus zero and it is very good. We bought butter for breakfast. Yes. Butter. Keith’s call. I suggested a jar of sauce and pasta, or a pizza. I couldn’t figure out how to replicate the breakfasts of the recent past, so I just picked things I really like. Keith was not in. (geez) He said he will go out in the morning to find bread to eat with our butter. It definitely could happen. I took a picture of a 6 pack of soda – notice it is not bound by plastic! C’mon USA, that seems like a reasonable change.
We didn’t have dessert at dinner, so we shared a coconut roll. Mmmm.
Luxembourg looks very agreeable to me. And what a nice vacation set up! Looking forward to learning more as you guys explore… As you would guess, my favorite so far is the Sousaphone fountain – who ever would have thought of THAT???
I meant to look it up last night, but then it got tired out.So, the internet says Installed in 1982, the 2.8-metre bronze ‘Hämmelsmarsch’ sculpture represents Luxembourg’s traditional mutton parade. The sculpture was made by Luxembourgish sculptor Wil Lofy and displays a music band including an accordion player, a drummer, a tuba player and a horn player with some children and of course, sheep.
That does make you ask, mutton parade? Internet again!
If all of a sudden, you happen to hear a marching band approaching your home, rest assured: it’s neither the Mardi Gras nor any official type of ceremony! It’s the so-called ‘mutton march’. In a long-standing tradition, local music groups play the unmistakeable march in the streets, inviting people to the town fair. The tradition has been upheld, although the march has nowadays mostly become an important opportunity for music groups to raise funds – so be generous! Why the sheep? Back in the day, they served as prizes at the fair and were taken along as an attraction or ‘teaser’. These days, marches rarely feature any livestock, but should you happen to spot a stray lamb, don’t worry, they will be fine! You just can’t win them anymore.