After our Brussels exploration ended, we decided to go to Luxembourg at the 11th hour. It was fun! Sometimes it is good to be a last-minute dot-com person.
Fortunately, Brussels offers good connections to different European cities for nominal prices even if you buy tickets minutes before riding the train. So if you are a student, be sure to carry your student ID for discounts.
Over the years, traveling experience has proven an unfortunate reality: Usually, we discover amazing things but at the end of our tour. Why it happens? I have no clue.
I experienced the same in Luxembourg. We grabbed a last-minute hotel deal while on the train. The Grunewald Hotel is superb to stay in, but it is a bit far from the train station. At Grunewald, both the service and staff proved it was a good choice and certainly the best value for money.
On Sunday returning to Charleroi, we discovered you can also get a cheap place to stay in Luxembourg right opposite the train station that not only saves you a 30 pound ($36) taxi fare but is convenient and ideal for bus connections to the city center and surroundings – especially if you fancy a quiet place in the suburb. But note that the neighborhood might not be ideal!
The next morning, a lovely sunny dawn awaited us. By all standards, Luxembourg is a cool place! Truly a soothing spot, greenish mountains, ultra-clean roads and calmness make you feel like you are in walking in a dreamland.
By the year 2030, Luxembourg will have all-electric buses. The city has imposed a carbon tax on motor vehicles, which rises every year. The reason is simple, making it an environmentally friendly city.
Luxembourg stands out in coolness and deals. The first charm is certainly free transport, so you don’t have to buy tickets to travel by buses, trains and trams. Though, one can enjoy free public transport, remember the taxi charges you a high amount, so the best remedy would be to book it online.
Second, it offers low-rental properties in the heart of the city. That is especially good considering the current cost-of-living crisis.
Subsequently, the freedom to move around and its layout are other luxuries of visiting the fortified Luxembourg. I'd like to offer thanks to my travel mate and our group leader, Yasar, for his well-planned and timed trip.
In a limited amount of time, we managed to see the capital Luxembourg's center filled with restaurants, cafes, bars, the Place Guillaume II, the city square, the adjacent high street, the city palace and a few historic buildings.
Place Guillaume II is currently under renovation but still open. While walking through the high street and observing its flanking narrow streets, including Rue De La Monnaie, Grand-Rue and Combat De Gel, I was reminded of “The Marten Trotzigs Grand,” the narrowest street in Stockholm city mainly designed to guard its inhabitants from invaders on horseback.
Although, it was Sunday morning, the high street was packed mostly with tourists. We had our breakfast cum-lunch at Snack Ankara and grabbed coffee from Grand Cafe, a truly wonderful weekend experience.
Though I was never a coffee person, England made me one. Really, coffee does something petrol does to a car. Yeah! It keeps us running. After raising our energy levels, we rushed to the Adolphe Bridge, a double-decked arch bridge, that looks majestic in its appearance and design, and a perfect place to begin your walk alongside the river and valley.
Luxembourg, also known as Letzeburg, stands on a “sandstone plateau” surrounded by the Alzette River that flows through a deep twisting valley.
At first glance, Luxembourg city’s dazzling grandeur, purpose-built walls and tunnels recall its builders and their tactical skills. Apparently, it’s an armored city surrounded by thick bricks and cemented walls.
The inner city offers well-distinct pathways for backpackers of all levels. Stone-built streets are living pieces of splendid art.
Walking alongside the thick city walls, bulwarks, antique dwellings, surrounding riverbanks and mountain’s pleasant sound, and of course relaxing nature fills your travel appetite.
Luxemburg’s indescribable beauty has been admired by the world’s famous artists, poets, philosophers and celebrities. So much so that each one of them has left imprints of their love for it.
German poet and philosopher Johann Wolfgang Goethe summed up his Luxembourg trip as: “He who has not seen Luxembourg simply cannot picture these war structures, juxtaposed and superimposed as they are ... There is so much greatness and grace here, so much gravity combined with gentleness.”
To be honest, words cannot describe the description of the city unless you pay a visit, witness it and feel it. Truly, someone has rightly named it: “Europe’s most beautiful balcony.”
To discover the most of Luxembourg in a short span of time, one should have strong legs and walking stamina. I would recommend you wear soft and lightweight shoes and carry a small backpack.
At the UNESCO World Heritage Site, I climbed up to one of the adjacent watchtowers and was astonished to watch the city's dazzling view from a tiny purpose-built window. Initially, I thought, it may require an entrance fee but surprisingly, almost every place here is free, from museums to monuments and palaces.
A beautiful sunny day, pin-dropped quietness in the Roman streets and my passion for taking hundreds of photos slowed me down as Yasar said, "Come on guys, we really need to go airport to hire a self-drive car for our next venture."
At the airport, we learned that direct flights to Cologne were super expensive. Our second option of renting a car was not an affordable one. So, we decided to take the train to Charleroi, an impromptu but again good decision.
As our memorable tour was coming to an end, we had just one more hour, so we decided to wander in the surroundings. Coincidently once again, the experience worked, the hotels were cheap, but a mineral water bottle cost me 3.50 euros ($3.75).
I must admit that shopping around is always a good practice that I lack otherwise in an adjacent street there was a Lebanese supermarket selling the same brand at half-price.
We decided to refill our energy tank, “Golden Bean” coffee opposite the train station is perhaps the best place. It was even open on Sunday evening.
