It's the best-kept secret in the world. That's handy, because it's beautiful but tiny, and too many tourists would spoil this place. The relative quiet and low-key atmosphere is one of its charms.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Luxembourg, the historically-confused Franco-German country squeezed in between France, Germany, Belgium and just about every other place in Europe. I arrived here at midday yesterday, and fell completely in love within 10 minutes. It's an incredible city - it manages to combine ancient history with pastoral country with metropolitan chic and does it remarkably well. The city centre is quite small - in fact, so is the whole city. Melbourne's rural cities like Ballarat or Bendigo are easily bigger. You could be forgiven for not realising that you're in one of the European capitals.
Anyway, the actual CBD is quite small and you can walk from one end to another within 20 minutes, easily. The city itself spreads out further, with the station down south and more museums and shopping around to the north-east. It's much more sprawling than French cities, though, probably because it's more like Australia, population-wise, than France. As a result they've kept the city's history and incorporated it into the modern city.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Luxembourg, the historically-confused Franco-German country squeezed in between France, Germany, Belgium and just about every other place in Europe. I arrived here at midday yesterday, and fell completely in love within 10 minutes. It's an incredible city - it manages to combine ancient history with pastoral country with metropolitan chic and does it remarkably well. The city centre is quite small - in fact, so is the whole city. Melbourne's rural cities like Ballarat or Bendigo are easily bigger. You could be forgiven for not realising that you're in one of the European capitals.
Anyway, the actual CBD is quite small and you can walk from one end to another within 20 minutes, easily. The city itself spreads out further, with the station down south and more museums and shopping around to the north-east. It's much more sprawling than French cities, though, probably because it's more like Australia, population-wise, than France. As a result they've kept the city's history and incorporated it into the modern city.
Luxembourg is built on several different levels - that is to say, it's far from being flat ground. I'm staying in the old part of town, known as the 'ville basse' - lower city - as opposed to the ville haute, or upper city. That's not to say there's only upper and lower. The city goes up and down and up and down and up and down and the streets do too. Your legs get a good old workout here.
Yesterday afternoon I went exploring the Bock casements. Of the old fortress of Luxembourg, two major parts still exist - the Petrusse casements and the Bock casements. The latter are on the bridge between the youth hostel and the city, so I paid the small entry fee and went in. You can look out either side of the bridge through the (barred) openings all along the length of the bridge, which is built over the top of the fortress casements. It's a real rabbit warren, and I had to take care - I wouldn't like Luxembourg nearly so well if I broke the other leg here!
It currently sounds like the whole city is under seige by the loud explosions overhead. In fact it's just fireworks, and though I'd love to see them I think I'll stay inside, since they're very close and very loud. The fireworks are part of the celebrations that have been going on ever since I got here. The weekend is the marriage of - let me see if I can get this right - Son Altesse Royale, Grand-Duc Heretier Prince Guillaume et la Comptesse Stephanie de Layonne - His Royal Highness Prince William, Grand-Ducal heir of Luxembourg, and his fiancee, the lovely Countess Stephanie. The Luxembourgers are loving it - this is their own Prince William and Kate story, and they're totally into it. Apart from the usual concessions that come with such an event - concerts, road blocks, etc. - every shop window in Luxembourg city has a glossy press photo of the couple reposing on a red velvet cushion, half the Luxembourgish flags on the streets have been changed for ones with a big curlique 'G', and the whole city are carrying Luxembourg flags with a picture of Guillaume and Stephanie in a loveheart superimposed over the top. The whole thing is really kind of cute, though I confess the fixation of the whole city was just a little annoying at first. Also, turns out there are five kids in the Grand-Ducal family (and two adorable grandkids, too). Everyone, look up Prince Sebastien...
It currently sounds like the whole city is under seige by the loud explosions overhead. In fact it's just fireworks, and though I'd love to see them I think I'll stay inside, since they're very close and very loud. The fireworks are part of the celebrations that have been going on ever since I got here. The weekend is the marriage of - let me see if I can get this right - Son Altesse Royale, Grand-Duc Heretier Prince Guillaume et la Comptesse Stephanie de Layonne - His Royal Highness Prince William, Grand-Ducal heir of Luxembourg, and his fiancee, the lovely Countess Stephanie. The Luxembourgers are loving it - this is their own Prince William and Kate story, and they're totally into it. Apart from the usual concessions that come with such an event - concerts, road blocks, etc. - every shop window in Luxembourg city has a glossy press photo of the couple reposing on a red velvet cushion, half the Luxembourgish flags on the streets have been changed for ones with a big curlique 'G', and the whole city are carrying Luxembourg flags with a picture of Guillaume and Stephanie in a loveheart superimposed over the top. The whole thing is really kind of cute, though I confess the fixation of the whole city was just a little annoying at first. Also, turns out there are five kids in the Grand-Ducal family (and two adorable grandkids, too). Everyone, look up Prince Sebastien...
Today I jumped on the tourist bus that tours Luxembourg City and just explored a little, spending a little time at the Botanic Gardens. When I climbed off at the stop for the Museum of Modern Art, I think is was, I didn't even notice the museum. I only had one day, and I wasn't going to waste it in a museum when there were plenty more back home. No, I saw a trail. A trail leading down from the road into the little woodsy area through which we were passing. Bushbashing in Luxembourg. OK.
I ended up on another road lower down and followed it for a while, eventually ending up what I later discovered was the Tour Malakoff, or Malakoff Tower. It's not very tall and was (presumably) locked up, but I did climb the outer stairs to stand on the balcony. The views of Luxembourg were stunning. Picturesque simply does not begin to describe this place. I wandered a ways further down the road to the Maison Schumann before I turned back for the climb back up the hill. Earlier this evening I also took a walk along the nearby river, having finally figured out how to get to the lower level of the city (like I said, maaaany levels). There's a beautiful stone church on the other side of the river and someday I'll find a way across there to have a look. I think it's called the Church of Saint Michael and it's the oldest church in the city of Luxembourg.
This afternoon I took a ride on the Petrusse Express. It's a little road train (as in, it has tyres, not just wheels) that goes for an hour-long trip through some of the older sections of the city. I was in the front carriage with five Dutch guys who are here for the weekend. We had some good fun looking at all the scenery we passed and laughing at the somnolent passengers in the second carriage (as well as all the usual joshing that boys do). It was great fun and spared my poor feet a little. Horace is getting some serious mileage on him. Come January he'll be good for nothing but scrap parts.
I ended up on another road lower down and followed it for a while, eventually ending up what I later discovered was the Tour Malakoff, or Malakoff Tower. It's not very tall and was (presumably) locked up, but I did climb the outer stairs to stand on the balcony. The views of Luxembourg were stunning. Picturesque simply does not begin to describe this place. I wandered a ways further down the road to the Maison Schumann before I turned back for the climb back up the hill. Earlier this evening I also took a walk along the nearby river, having finally figured out how to get to the lower level of the city (like I said, maaaany levels). There's a beautiful stone church on the other side of the river and someday I'll find a way across there to have a look. I think it's called the Church of Saint Michael and it's the oldest church in the city of Luxembourg.
This afternoon I took a ride on the Petrusse Express. It's a little road train (as in, it has tyres, not just wheels) that goes for an hour-long trip through some of the older sections of the city. I was in the front carriage with five Dutch guys who are here for the weekend. We had some good fun looking at all the scenery we passed and laughing at the somnolent passengers in the second carriage (as well as all the usual joshing that boys do). It was great fun and spared my poor feet a little. Horace is getting some serious mileage on him. Come January he'll be good for nothing but scrap parts.
The wildlife here is also interesting - the bird life along is freaking me out with their strange imitations of Australian feathered beings (like magpies...). I did have some encounters with some land-bound ones today..well, mostly landbound. During my little ramble in the woods on the edge of town I came across a red bouncy thing with a bushy tail. If any of you have been put in mind of Scamper in Enid Blyton's Willom Farm series then you're right on the money. My first ever European squirrel. I was much more interested in him than he was in me - then again, foraging for nuts or human - what would you choose? There was also what very much resembled, and therefore may have been, an otter swimming in the river while I was out walking this afternoon. Though I've seen them at the zoo, of course, this was my first wild otter, which was kind of exciting.
Time for me to go to bed, I have a train to catch early tomorrow morning to another exciting and mysterious location...in the meantime, if everyone could start redirecting my mail to the Luxembourg GPO, it will make things much easier until I can buy a house here.
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