Luxembourg, take 1

We took our first road trip to Luxembourg city, Luxembourg this past weekend. The drive only took about 45 minutes....which I know we can shave down to 20 minutes driving a new Audi designed to take full advantage of the Autobahn speeds. Why bring up the new Audi again? Because expensive cars are EVERYWHERE in Luxembourg city. This brings us to the first observation of Luxembourg: there is no shortage of money. Anywhere. Going in, we knew the reputation Luxembourg holds for being the one of the wealthiest cities in the world with a deep lineup of banking and investing institutions. Reputation confirmed. Our first stop was the D'Coque Center National Sport and Culture. This state of the art facility has an amazing aquatic center that includes seven pools, diving tower and pool, an Olympic-sized pool, and a Turkish bath. We sat in the bleachers (seating capacity 650) and watched as several people took to the diving tower. Most jumped from the 5 and 10 meter platforms and performed some amazing dives. Unfortunately we did not see anyone attempt the 15 meter platform.

Heading into the heart of the city, we parked at the MUDAM Museum of Modern Art and continued our tour by foot. Heading down JFK Avenue, we crossed the bridge that offers a great view of the Pfaffenthal valley and the Vauabn Towers. I should point out that the option to walk from such a distance was more by accident than planning. Parking is hard to come by in Luxembourg and after a few "scenic tours" of downtown, we took advantage of a near empty parking structure on the edge of the city. Another option for touring the city is either by a tour bus that drives around pointing out the sights and explains their significance or by bicycle. For a few Euro's, you can rent a bicycle and peddle around the city at your leisure.


We appear to be building a knack for visiting cities while some major event is taking place given the carnival in Williams Square on our visit.


Ahhh....nothing makes a person feel at home like McDonalds.


Eating in Luxembourg is expensive, so bring plenty of Euro's. We found a great Mexican restaurant right in Williams Square after "one of us" vetoed the idea of getting a Big Mac to help us "feel at home". Looking back it was probably a wise choice. It's never a good thing to get a Mcstomach ache walking around a new city.

Not having enough time to follow the suggested walking tour route, we opted instead to walk around and take in a few historical sights. Our first stop was the Gelle Fra Memorial in Constitution Square. Also known as the Monument of Remembrance, it is dedicated to the thousands of Luxembourgers who volunteered for service during World War I.

The view from Constitution Square is amazing. Here we are looking down at the Adolphe Bridge that crosses the Petrusse Valley.

You can also see the Bank Museum accross the way

A small but pretty cool church we stumbled upon that dated back to the 1300's

We decided to cut our visit to the city short so that we could drive out to the American Cemetery and Memorial (see next entry). There is still much to see and do in the city and we are looking forward to our next visit. One of the attractions we are looking forward to is touring the Bock Casemates: an extraordinary network of underground galleries that at one time sheltered thousands of defenders with their equipment, horses, artillery, weapons, workshops, kitchens, and bakeries. With such a labyrinth tunnel system, it only makes sense we pick up a Big Mac and shake of the month to fight off our McHunger.