Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

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Luxembourg is a country that I have never been too, and I decided to visit Luxembourg City for the day. My thoughts were if I liked enough that I may come back in the future for a longer stay. I researched just a small bit, and the photos that I saw were stunning. I was hoping I could find the same sights to view with my own two eyes. Luxembourg is the world's second richest country, behind oil-rich Qatar. Luxembourg seemingly has a more down-to-earth approach to wealth. It's largely dependent on the banking, steel and industrial sectors and is a world away from the the mega-yachts and jet-setting celebs of its Riviera counterpart - Monoco.

To get to Luxembourg City from London, I had to make a stop in Brussels, Belgium. I would have loved to spend a little time there, but I had an agenda I was trying to keep. After the short layover, I am on my way again. After arriving at the train station, the first thing I had to do was to find my hostel. The train station was in the center of town, and it was not really within walking distance to my hostel. I was not sure about the transit system, and after asking several times to different people, I find the correct bus to get on to take me to the correct stop. My hostel was down a long winding pathway. Oh, and it of course was raining. I tried to be extra careful, because I had my backpack and day bag on me, and they seemed to get heavier and heavier with each step I was taking.

I locate the hostel, check in, and take my things to my room. After cleaning up a bit, I take off to explore Luxembourg City. The rain had picked up, so my rain jacket and hood were on. I did not bring an umbrella this trip, for I tried to minimize the weight, but it would have came in handy at this point. The only downside would be that I would not be able to take photos while holding it. This also was a determining factor to leave at home. Any way, I make my way to the center of the town, and it was a steady incline. Great! Here it is raining, my daybag is getting soaked, and I have to steadily incline as I walk. Now, saying all that, the sight once I reached the peak was beautiful.

I continue to search out the city, and while walking around I was able to see the Grand Ducal Palace. Located in the heart of Luxembourg City, the Grand Ducal Palace is the official palace of the Grand Duke and is used for all official functions. Owned by the State, it is one of two palaces made available to the Grand Duke under the Constitution of Luxembourg. While there, I saw the changing of the guard. Nothing extravagent like I have seen in the past, for there was only one guard, and after a small ceramony it was over. Still pretty neat to see.

I walk along and also come across Luxembourg's Notre Dame Cathedral. It is the only cathedral in Luxembourg. I was able to walk in and view the beautiful place. My photos came out a little blurry, for I could not use my flash, but my memory of this beautiful place will have to suffice I suppose. I continue to walk around and take photos of interesting things, but with the rain picking up a bit, I really did not feel like walking too far from my hostel so I headed back. The funny thing is that when I travel, I take side streets in about every city to maybe see the"gem" I would not have seen otherwise. I did that here and got turned around on two or three occassions, but I always seemed to make my way back to the center of town.

I make it back to my hostel, and after chatting with my roommates, it is time to get some shuteye. I have an early train in the morning, and I have to take a bus back to the train station. I am not certain of the time it will take with all of the stops, so I will have to leave a little earlier than I normally would.

Morning comes, and I check out, and make my way to where I think the bus stop is. I notice people on the other side of the street down from me, so I just go and join them. I ask them if a particular bus that was at the stop was my bus to take me back to the train station, and I was told yes. Language barrier. They did not understand me, for the bus I boarded did not go to the train station. After realizing this, I got off at the first stop I could. Lucky for me, my bus that I needed also had a stop here. I waited until it arrived, boarded, and was thrilled to be on the right bus. By this time, I was sweating profusely due to walking and stressing, but now all was well. I made it to the train station, boarded my train , and was off to my next destination.

I reflected back, and Luxembourg was a beautiful city to visit, but if I ever visited again, I would hope there would be no rain where I could truly see the full beauty of the city.

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