Luxembourg
My partner, Marc, and I thought of going to Luxembourg while we were in Brussels. However, we became more determined to make it happen when we realized it had been over 20 years since our last visit.
This summer's trip to the tiny nation was my third having visited it for the first time in 1990 with classmates and friends from my university days in Madrid. I went there for the second time with Marc last 2000 right before we embarked on a two week tour of France with Globus Tours.
On our third week of travel since we arrived in Europe this summer, we decided to splurge and bought first class tickets for our return to beautiful Luxembourg. We paid roughly 93 euros for both our tickets and we took the second train of the day going out. If my memory serves me right, it was around 7 am. It was quite a peaceful and comfortable ride considering we were the only passengers on the train car and there were no more than ten on the return to Brussels in the late afternoon.
I think we saw most of the sights that day although we didn't have time to visit any museum. We'll do it when we go back. That for sure.
I was very surprised by the changes I saw. I for one don't remember seeing their most elegant and most expensive street lined with high end boutiques like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Chanel, and more before. There was lots of glitz and glamour there now for sure. There was even a branch of the popular French department store, Galeries Lafayette, where I shopped later that day.
I remembered seeing some monuments since I took pictures of them and kept them in one of my photo albums.
The beautiful Bruxelles Central station
The Bruxelles Central Station was still empty when we arrived to catch our train to Luxembourg. There were very few people around. We bought some croissants and coffee for breakfast from the sole coffee shop open at 7 in the morning.
On board our first class train car to Luxembourg. Surprisingly we were the only passengers on the way out. It must have been the time. We took the second train for the day and it sure was early.
Here's a view of the first class train car we were on. Was it peaceful, truly peaceful that morning. I loved it!
Monument de Souvenir Gel Fra
A square filled with cafes and restaurants
Statue of the Grand Duchess Charlotte
A bronze sculpture showing an accordion player, a man with a horn, a man with a drum, and another one with a tuba. It also shows some sheep, and two children under an umbrella. I believe it's called the Hammelsmarsch. I first saw it last 1990 during my very first visit to the country.
Beautiful Luxembourg
My lunch at a Lebanese restaurant
Photo opp!
Galeries Lafayette
Marc on our way to Luxembourg
A partial view of the Luxembourg Palace where the nation's heads, the Duke and Duchess, reside