Luxembourg. It’s all so very fairy tale. A magic little kingdom. Well, technically, it’s a magic little grand duchy, and the world’s last remaining grand duchy at that. I got here on the penultimate day of my 2004 Benelux trip. It was my first Fabulous International Sightseeing trip (although not my first trip overseas), and I didn’t know at that point that there would be a second. I was almost screaming to myself that I didn’t want it to end. I was absolutely enthralled with the charm and natural beauty of Luxembourg. The center of the city is set high above steep, narrow gorges, which just adds to the idyllic ambiance. Luxembourg is at a higher altitude and more inland than Belgium and the Netherlands, and I was visiting in October. So for the first time on my trip, I saw colorful autumn leaves. All I could think was that someone had taken a medieval village and placed it in Vermont. The predominant language in Luxembourg is French, so like in Brussels, I could get by on “tourist French”–i.e., whatever was left over in my brain from my high school and college studies of French.
Seven years later, I had a big surprise. I was interviewing for a new job, and I was asked if I would be willing to spend 3 months in Luxembourg. What do you think? So for 3 months in 2011, I got to live and work in Luxembourg at the heart of Western Europe. Heaven.
Speaking of heaven in Luxembourg, the food is out of this world. There are 2 excellent conglomerations of restaurants: Place d’Armes (along with the adjoining Place Guillaume II) in central Luxembourg and Place de Paris in the Gare (“train station”) district. In Place de Paris in particular, you can not go wrong. If you ever make there, do not miss the Oberweis bakery shops. There’s one conveniently located in the main train station, plus a handful of others scattered around the capital area. Baked goods and sweets to die for. When my 3-month stay began, a bag full of Oberweis treats was sent to my door every morning. For the second half of my trip, I canceled the delivery. I was putting on too many kilograms.
One other thing about Luxembourg. There is no subway or streetcar. But Luxembourg has the most fabulous bus system. Riding around Luxembourg by bus is urban transit nirvana. Seriously.
At a later date, I will post my pictures and travelogues from my trip to Benelux.