Luxembourg's National Day and Trier in Germany

Yesterday was Luxembourg's biggest party in the year to celebrate their National Day and the birthday of the Grand Duke Jean de Luxembourg on the 23rd June.

I decided to brave the crowds despite being warned that it would NOT be particularly exciting if I wasn't drunk out of my mind, and 16 years old.

So I gathered my tiny troop (William was working), and we headed to the center at 9.30pm. I tell you, it was packed, and all notions of Luxembourg being a tame, boring city was quickly dispelled when I saw the throngs of people clogging the streets and dancing away to the tunes of whatever music was at the corner, beer bottles strewn everywhere, the stench of marijuana permeating the air, drunken teenagers falling over their feet... it was WILD!

The wildness was understandable since it IS the one night where they get to go crazy. But what was a bit shocking to me was the fact that there were so many children there as well. Tiny tots pushed around in prams, 5-year olds holding on to their parents and looking lost... And the amount of very very very very drunk kids - who looked all of 12 years old!

I am sorry to disappoint and have no further party pictures because we three boring girls found ourselves a quiet corner away from the crowd, and talked about children (to have or not to have) and travels whilst waiting for the fireworks show slated for 11.30pm.

(1 pint of beer 4.50 euro, 1 small bottle of coke 2.50 euro) 

The fireworks were spectacular and worth the wait, though next year I'm going to take the Super Bosses' offer and stay at the room in the hotel with a view instead of going into town.

xxx

So because of the celebrations, today is a public holiday, meaning Super Hubby's off!

I decided to drag him out of Luxembourg to visit Trier (in neighbouring Germany), which I went once before and liked a lot because it was a small bustling, busy town on the weekdays (everything is closed on Sundays).

Trying to be artistic while waiting for the train.

The train ride costs 8.40euros per person (return), for a 40-minute ride. Cheap!

The station, and the beautiful views on the train.

Some old structure which is probably very important cos there were tour buses and tons of tourists snapping pictures. I couldn't be bothered to find out what it was cos I was starving.

William with his makan. 

Rump steak with fries (perfectly done) and a goat cheese salad (which he said was disgusting), 

and which I finished to avoid wastage (as usual).

Now you see why he's so skinny and I'm so....

My absolutely perfect and delicious liver and blood sausage with potatoes and onions, German-style. 

So good!

Total Damage: 44.10 euro for all the food, 1 radler (beer with lemonade), 1 large bottle of mineral water (which was more expensive than the beer), and 1 latte machiato. 

Germany is definitely cheaper than Luxembourg.

We ended up not doing any sightseeing cos we were distracted by the sales signs everywhere, and because William has no summer clothes at all. Here are our spoils after 2 hours, as we waited for the train to get back to Luxembourg in time to cook dinner and watch the 8pm match. 

Trains between Luxembourg and Trier run every hour, so it was extremely convenient.

Happy, happy, joy, joy!

Artsy Fartsy

The good thing about living in Luxembourg is its proximity to many other countries.

Most people who live here travel across the borders every weekend because they can, and because nothing is open here on Saturdays and Sundays.

For my first Saturday here, I got lucky and was offered to join in on a trip organized by a Countess to visit neighbouring Cologne, Germany for a tour of an auction house and later the Ludwig Museum, which now houses the world's third largest Picasso collection.

So I set off at 8am with a bus load full of French + German speaking people, together with my new-found friend Z, who is also a newcomer in Luxembourg. She's a Slovakian who spent the past 13 years in the US, and is tons of fun.

 Miss Z.

Now, everyone who knows me should know I (somewhat) like art, but definitely NOT classical art or whatever they call this. As luck would have it, the auction house's upcoming sale was a collection of not-my-kinda-art. But it was still a good experience to walk around and see the very rich people (who were in my bus) looking at the pieces and booking them and doing all the things that rich people do. We two girls ended up outside soaking in the sun, and giggling away at stupid things.

A sample of the artwork on display. The man here is the owner of the Van Ham auction house.

 You all would also know too that I love my reflection, and so was pretending to be very interested in this piece of furniture while actually trying to take a picture of myself in the mirror. Also for your information, this desk is estimated at 60,000 to 80,000 euros.

Then we headed off to lunch where I was again too shy to take pictures, but I must mention that it was a superb buffet with wild rice and curry and dal! I like! Oh, price: 27 euro.

Afterwards, we were off to the Museum. While I'm not a fan of Picasso, I must say I was excited to see pieces of his REAL work. Also exciting was the fact that there was a huge collection of Russian Avant-Garde, Surrealism and Expressionism on show, and THAT, I like!

We weren't allowed bags or cameras in the museum, so I can't show you what it was like. But I did manage to sneak two shots from my camera phone of what i could when the guards were not looking my way. (See what I do for you people I love?)

stolen shots

All in all, it was an education. I still don't understand Picasso, and think that people make too much of his lines and circles. And there was also this thing that bugged me. It was from some artist, and was all a single shade of BLUE, and justified to be a piece that represented experiential infinity. Seriously.

But there were some pieces that I could just stand there and look at for the longest time. And I wish we had more than two hours there, so I could slowly trawl the place and read the explanations, whether to snigger in disbelief, or nod my head in agreement.

At 6pm, I said goodbye to Cologne, and trundled on the bus very tired, but slightly more cultured.

Total journey time: 3 hours per way.
Museum tickets: 6.50 euro per person.