Tag Archives: Luxembourg

Luxembourg

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Day 29     Sunday, September 28, 2025

Bob found a free zoo in the countryside not far from us.  Cities and museums are interesting but after a while we both need a change of pace. It is a sunny today and we are both ready for a more relaxing day.  Every time we pass this crosswalk Bob mistakes these signs for real children.  Perhaps they are a bit too lifelike?

On our drive we see these cement pillboxes, remnants of the First World War.  There are reminders of both the World Wars all over Europe, in cities, towns and the countryside. These reminders are a part of everyday life and make the wars seem not so distant. At home in Canada, it seems like we think about the world wars in November on Remembrance Day.  Here I am thinking about them much more often.

On the way to the zoo we stop at a place just off the highway where people go rock climbing.There is no hint that these cliffs are a couple minutes walk from the road.

We hear voices, and walk around a corner to see a group of people rock climbing.

We sit on a big rock and watch for a while.  I am amazed a the strength these climbers have in their fingers and toes.  Of course they are strong overall, but so much relies on their fingers and toes finding the right nooks and crannies and supporting the climber’s weight as they slowly make their way up the rock face. It is amazing to watch them. We never had a chance to try anything like this when we were younger and I think it is a bit too late to begin now.  

One young couple went over to another rock face to climb. We heard a crash and I saw this climber fall from a height of about 3 meters, maybe more. He looked like he was free climbing as we didn’t see any rope. He lay on the ground not moving for a long time, then finally was able to sit up with help. He was carried over to a chair and I chatted with him as we left.  He said several times that he was very lucky. He hurt his ankle but he didn’t think that it was broken. We wished him luck. I’m sure he will be black and blue and very sore as he fell sideways and landed on the full length of his body. It was scary to watch it happen.

We walked a bit further and saw this woman climbing…she was impressive!  She was climbing much higher than the first people we watched. In no time she managed to climb onto and over the outcropping of rocks just above her in this photo.  Her husband was her belayer and their two children were watching.  They had rock climbing harnesses as well. the boy ran up to us to welcome us to their spot, laughing and giggling the whole time with his sister.

She is so strong!  It was pretty incredible to watch her maneuver her way up a sheer rock face. I could have stayed even longer but we want to get to the zoo, so we head back to our car.

The Escher Déierepark-Tierpark is free and is more of a petting farm than a zoo.  The animals are mostly farm animals, along with a few different types of deer, and they are quite tame. We are able to buy bags of pellets to feed them. I think we had as much fun as the kids!

This beautiful Highland cow (I think it was a she) was my favourite.

She really loves to be fed! I think we became friends!

Bob made friends with this younger Highland cow.

There is a sign asking not to feed the geese, and they object very loudly to being left out.

A few of the deer resting in the shade. We have our picnic lunch here and walk around the park twice. It was such a nice relaxing afternoon and we so enjoyed the sunshine and watching the children feed the animals.

On the walk back to the car we see an area that has been uprooted by wild boars. Wild boars are found in Luxembourg and are considered Europe’s only “dangerous game” animal. Hunters in Luxembourg shoot about 5,000 animals annually. They are increasing in number and are becoming a problem as they move closer to inhabited areas.

We see a garden folly and I take a closer look. 

Sorry for the blurry photo. We have seen several of these large black cutouts of a person with a white cross on their chest.  I google to find out what they are, only to discover these are used to mark the spot where a person has died in a motor vehicle accident.

Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

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Day 28     Saturday, September 27, 2025

We drive a half hour to a free parking lot on the outskirts of Luxembourg city, then catch a bus to the downtown area. We should have realized something was wrong when we passed this interesting looking tower…we saw it when we drove to the parking lot. So…we caught the bus going the wrong way and ended up at different  parking lot on the outskirts of the city! The bus driver told us where to get the tram we now need to use to get into the city.  Luckily all the public transportation in Luxembourg is free!

We pass this renovation site on the way to downtown. I am impressed that buildings are almost always repaired, not demolished.

Walking downtown we pass a Cartier store. The necklace is ‘only’ 191,000€, the two bracelets are 26,900€ and 36,200€ and the ring is 113,000€…just a wee bit out of my price range!

We find a Post Office to buy stamps. While we are writing on the postcards, my purse falls down between the counter and the wall…a narrow space less than a foot wide!  I have to ask the security guard to come help. Even though his arms are much longer than mine  he is just barely able to reach my purse.  My phone fell out when he pulled my purse up but luckily it is on a cord attached to my purse so it didn’t fall to the bottom of the space behind the counter!

There is a big park downtown, at the base of high cliffs.

Yes, another church! The cathedral “Notre-Dame” of Luxembourg was built between 1613 and 1621 by the Jesuits. The stained glass windows make a stunning backdrop for the altar.

There are many paintings and tapestries in this cathedral, and the stone pillars are decorated with intricate carving.

I look up and there are paintings on the ceiling high above the nave.

We pass the National Monument in Memory of the Victims of the Shoah in Luxembourg (1940-1945). The monument was inaugurated on 17 June 2018. It is named after the Kaddish, one of the most famous Jewish prayers recited as part of mourning rituals in Judaism.

Luxembourg City has an upper plateau, which contains the historic Old Town, and a lower valley known as Grund. This area is home to some of the oldest and most picturesque buildings in the city, dating back to the 14th century. Take notice of the suspended platform on the right of this photo.

People are dining in the sky! I am not sure why anyone would want to do this. It does not appeal to me in the least, but for 325€ per person you can have lunch prepared by Michelin chefs 50 meters high above the ground!

We were in Luxembourg 46 years ago, but all I can remember is looking down from high walls onto the city, like we are doing here.

We take an elevator down to the lower part of town and cross a bridge on our way to the Natural History Museum.

I would not want to be a bus driver here, the streets are very narrow.  

We see our first halloween decorations.

The current St. John the Baptist church dates back to the 17″ century. Its rich Baroque furnishings are not its original ones, they were taken from other churches during the period after the French Revolution!

In the valley looking up at the upper city.

As we enter the Natural History Museum I am startled by the man sitting on the red couch.  From a distance I thought he was a real person.

It isn’t a big museum and after a quick look around I find a spot with a chair to sit and draw while Bob explores the rest of the museum.

This room is a hodge lodge of stuffed animals…some look old and a bit worse for wear.

Bob discovered an interesting fact about hedge hogs. “The European hedgehog is a nocturnal animal that is easy to recognize by its many spines. When faced with danger, it can curl up and form a “prickly ball”. Its luxembourgish name”Keisécker” (“cow sucker”) originates from a legend that hedgehogs sucked milk during the night from cow udders. Obviously this is not true as hedgehogs suffer from a lactose intolerance.” On our walk to the bus we stop for another look down into one of the garden areas below the walls.

We caught the right bus back to our car but getting out of the parking lot was another thing!  Thank heavens for Google maps!  We might still be driving in circles trying to get back onto the highway!

We see four nuclear power plants on the way home. They always give me an eerie feeling. I wouldn’t want to be living anywhere near one of these.

It is getting dark on the drive home but we are treated to a lovely sunset.