Seniors Visit a Grand Duchy

I did not know that there were so many places with the name Duchy. Google found: Cornwall, Burgundy Lancaster, Lucca and Milan.  I found several that were rated “Grand Duchy” like Lithuania, Warsaw and finally Luxembourg… and that’s where we are going today, simply because this senior has been there.

Luxembourg’s official name is Great Duchy of Luxembourg. It’s pretty small really (425,000+). There are 290,000 native Luxembourgers and 130,000 foreigners. I remember well passing through the country in just an hour.

This small country is surrounded by Belgium, France and Germany, and its history has been inextricably linked with that of its larger neighbors. It is largely made up of rolling hills and forests as I recall, rolling through the country on my Lambretta motor scooter way back when.

Nowhere else in Europe did I find such a discrete and dynamic mixture of ancient fortresses and contemporary architecture. Among prominent monuments of Luxembourg are the Gothic Cathedral of Notre Dame, from the 18th century, and the Grand Ducal Palace.

Seniors Find Another UNESCO Old City

Luxembourg City, made up of 78,000+ affable folks, is a lively and bustling town. A real cultural platform, it abounds in museums, theaters and concert halls. The center of the country is also home to no less than 150 different nationalities that have chosen to live in this exciting city.

The cultural program that makes up Luxembourg is made in the image of its city dwellers: multilingual, multicultural, creative and eclectic, simply a fun place to be. The Old City of Luxembourg has long been part of the UNESCO World Heritage with deep roots and ancient fortifications.

Luxembourg, founded in 963, became a Grand Duchy in 1815 and an independent state under the Netherlands. It lost more than half of its territory to Belgium in 1839, but gained a larger measure of autonomy. Full independence was attained in 1867.

Overrun by Germany in both World Wars, it ended its neutrality in 1948 when it entered into the Benelux Customs Union and when it joined NATO the following year. In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Economic Community, later the European Union, and in 1999 it joined the euro currency area.

 Senior Visitors Taste Speciality Dishes

His “Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Luxembourg” is Henri and as such is the monarchial head of state. Luxembourgish, the national language, is akin to German. When senior visitors are ready to dine out, speciality dishes are of the type one would expect in a forested country. They include hare and Ardennes ham, trout and pike, fresh from the country’s rivers as well as many local favorites.

Personally, I’d recommend Judd mat gaardebounen, served with potatoes and washed down with a Diekirch beer. Write that all down and carry it with you, okay? And oenophiles, Luxembourg shares the Moselle valley with Germany and the local white wines are well-known and highly popular.

Enjoy your visit to Luxembourg.  jeb