To complete the BeNeLux
trifecta I had to visit Luxembourg, another tiny little country, but
a much livelier one than Lichtenstein. As he does, Johannes had
philosophizing to do, this time at a conference of some sort, so I
was left to go it alone. At our Belgian base in Leuven, no one could
understand why I would want to visit Luxembourg. The reactions were
similar to if I announced I was going for a voluntary root canal. I
received a lot of weird looks from people who HAD NEVER ACTUALLY
BEEN. Well, to their no doubt surprise, it's a fantastic little
country and I loved it. In fact, in a parallel universe it could have
been my home for the past year because I was accepted into a Masters
program there. In true European polyglot style courses would have
been taught in French, English and German – perfect for keeping my
languages in practice. Honestly they get pretty rusty when you focus
on one over the others - for instance, German is now invading my
English and my French is getting un peu weird. They also speak
Luxembourgish, but no clue on how that old world dialect works.
The train ride passes by
familiar historic names – Flanders Fields (which were indeed filled
with growing poppies), Napoleon's Waterloo, many World War II spots
all of which are now the very epitome of peaceful rolling green
landscape. Every so often castle ruins would emerge from trees on a
hill top – it's very beautiful, velvety green countryside. I don't
know the exact dimensions, but Luxembourg is definitely bigger than
the other 'small' countries of Europe ie you can't stand on a hilltop
and see every corner. It has a fairly large city too and it's
actually one of the capitals of the European Union. It is also one of
the world's banking capitals and a tax haven. This means it's full of
bankers and diplomats...and therefore full of money. For instance,
Ebay has one of its head offices there and it looks, no joke, like a
fortified bunker [so this must be where their exorbitant seller fees
are being hoarded]. While (as I said) I really like Luxembourg, I
must be honest and say that if one was to count nouveau rich
douchebags per square kilometer, this place would rival Monte Carlo.
Lots of middle aged balding men in suits driving Porsches, squealing
their tires for attention. Despite this, it feels quite elegant and
cultured. The streets are clean, there are manicured green parks
everywhere, the old buildings are all really well maintained – with
the grander ones housing headquarters of what else but big banks. It
feels like somewhere where big deals are made, where power and wealth
live. I can't help but feel this would have been a great place for me
to have studied, instead of wasting a year in the backwater hole that
is Leipzig.
My favourite thing about
Luxembourg is the history. The city is a UNESCO heritage site and for
good reason. It sits on two levels, built upon old castle walls. You
actually take an elevator down to the bottom – a very Hong Kong
style feature. The more modern area is at the top and looks down upon
a storybook view – old ramparts, ruins, a river winding through,
lush greenery, centuries old houses. The top level also features
cobble stone streets and the royal palace (I believe it's a Duchy, so
there's still a royal family in residence), old churches, squares,
monuments, lots of EU buildings...everything was so quaint. The
shopping was fantastic - art galleries, furniture stores, boutiques,
and the BAKERIES...although maybe not for a student budget. I could
only afford to splurge on pastries – which were insane (and I
wonder why I have gained weight) - Luxembourgers know how to eat
well. In fact, I was very excited to find my old macaroon dealer –
which is not unlike a drug dealer – Laduree Not satisfied with my
usual baggie full of pistachio macs, I deciding to try their new
pistachio...marshmallows! But...they tasted nothing like pistachio.
Heartbreaking.
Despite temperatures
hitting 38 – I must digress and say this summer in Europe was
brutally hot, comparable to South Africa but without any aircon - I
made it my business to walk as much of the city as possible. And I
did a pretty credible job. I guess I have officially turned boring,
because these days I would rather get out of bed early and spend the
whole day wandering up and down a city's colourful side streets,
taking photos of the random little scenes I find then a wild night
out. I found a lot that I liked in Luxembourg. Everything was clean,
colourful, green, historic, pretty, polished. I will give it my
ultimate compliment: I could see myself living here one day.
