The City of Luxembourg

The weather suddenly became extremely cold here in this part of Europe! On Saturday we went to Luxembourg to visit Luxembourg City, and despite our thick jackets, scarves and gloves, we weren't really prepared to face the cold!

On arrival at the station we immediately bought some steaming hot coffee and set off to the starting point of our trip - the Monument of Remembrance (also known as Gëlle Fra) in the Place de la Constitution. Here a beautiful golden statue stands tall over the open plain, commemorating soldiers who served in World War I. The walk along Boulevard F D Roosevelt to the Place de la Constitution is impressive and beautiful with beautiful views of the cliffs and valleys below. On this side of the valley the view is not disrupted by train tracks of bridges. On your way to the Place de la Constitution, you walk past the Cathédrale Notre-Dame, which dates back to the 16th Century, its 20th century spires toppling above the city.



Gëlle Fra



Our Lady Cathedral





From Boulevard F D Roosevelt, we continued to the Place de la Constitution, Here is another beautiful, undisrupted view of the city's valleys below. From there we travelled North down Rue Chimay to reach yet another square, Place Guillaume II (see the photo below (left)). Here a bustle of food trucks sell aromatic Lëtzebuerger Grillwurscht (spicy sausages) and (the Luxembourgian national dish) Judd mat Gaardenbounen (smoked pork served with beans in a creamy sauce), tourists crowd the various market stalls, locals search for fresh produce and a tapestry of flowers on sale from the flower market all bring life into the rather quiet part of the Old Town. The smells of the square is mouth-watering, even though I don't even eat meat! 



View from FD Roosevelt Boulevard







From there we left the map in my handbag and just started strolling through the town (which is small to begin with). Along the way we caught a glimpse of the Palais Grand-Ducal, which is the Grand Duke's palace. The city is obsessed with their Royal Family. Photos of their favourite couple are displayed in almost every shop window (even in the most lavish designer shops) and postcards of all the members of the family are available at every cheesy souvenir shop.

We made our way to the Plateau du St-Esprit - a part of the remains of rocks fortified in the 16th century. The buildings around it now house the Cité Judiciare - the city's justice buildings. Here one gets another beautiful view of the city, which is different from the view from the Place de la Constitution. Here the valley is laced with old 18th-19th century buildings rising from the river. From here you can also see the Casemates du Bock (which is, in my opinion, probably the only interesting thing to see in Luxembourg City's Old Town).

View from Plateau du St Esprit

View from Plateau du St Esprit - here you can see the Bock Casemates, St Jean Baptiste Church's spire (front) as well as the modern city (EU district) in the back.

The Casemates du Bock is really interesting. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and it is the site of the original castle of Lucilinburhuc (which is apparently where the country's name comes from). I will devote another blog post especially to the Bock casemates, as I found it to be really interesting. But for only three Euros you can walk around the mysterious underground casemates through a maze of narrow corridors and steep steps.  Here-and-there you can see beautiful views of the St Jean-Baptiste church, River Alzette and Pétrusse which runs through the city. Unfortunately (for some people) much of the magical mystery of the castle is left to the imagination, but you can get a good idea of how big the city's fortress is when you go to the Musée Drai Eechelen.

Passage in the Bock Casemates

After the excursion around the casemates, we strolled along the river and through the woods to go to the Musée Drai Eechelen, which is housed in an interestingly shaped fort, known in English as The Three Acorns (due to the acorn shaped tops of the towers). The destruction of most of the city's fortifications after the Prussians left Luxembourg (thanks to a treaty which averted a potential war) lead to The Three Acorns towers to become forgotten, buried in ruins. But today, after the fortifications have been restored, it has become a military and history museum (which was free to visit). Right behind to towers, another interesting building (the Museum of Modern Art) looms, which becomes the transitioning mark between the "old" and the "modern" parts of the city. When walking along this architecturally rich area (which felt rather eerie because of the lack of human activity and the stark contrast between urban pavement and steel and the valleys and cliffs of the Old Town) you see several EU buildings and towers as well as an interesting building where Philharmonic Orchestras perform (and I am sure several other productions are performed here as well).

Three Acorn towers and the Museum of Modern Art (back)

Philharmonic Building

Overall, the city leaves some desire to be either more or less urbanised (in my opinion, I would've preferred the latter - not to see train tracks and bridges across the interesting nature-clad valleys). And sometimes I wish you could see more of the city's fortifications - I am sure Luxembourg used to be a really impressive sight in its glory days. Unfortunately, today, it seems bare and rather, uninteresting. It makes a nice day trip - if you have the time to spare. Hopefully one day I will be able to explore more of the surrounding parts of the super small (80km from top to bottom) country. Maybe it will offer a bit more satisfaction than the city itself does.

Have you ever been to Luxembourg City? Do you think it is interesting or did you have another impression of the city?