While traveling around Europe, I had to take a flight layover in Luxembourg on my way to another destination. Since I had never been to this tiny country, and didn’t know of anyone who had, I decided to extend the stay one full day and night so that I could check it out.
Luxembourg is nestled where Belgium, Germany and France all meet together, and the language spoken there is essentially any one of the three. What I found most interesting about Luxembourg is that it has a highly stable economy, and is a bit of a financial powerhouse. It actually has the highest GDP in the world, and is a fairly wealthy country. You will see the natives splendidly dressed as they are walking about the city on just a normal day. Women are beautifully coiffed with a wool shawl draped elegantly over their shoulders, while men are fashionable in chic French cut suits. You would swear you are strolling down Park Avenue in the the 1940’s. I’m not a fashion shrew, but if you’re anything like me, you’re probably wearing typically comfortable travel gear such as denim jeans and comfortable walking shoes. In Luxembourg I felt like a complete oaf as I trekked around with my hair thrown up in a pony-tail, while the women all around me were clad in their Gucci sunglasses.
I will say that it is a pretty country, with historic buildings that typify Europe, but honestly there’s nothing terribly exciting to see here that you can’t see elsewhere. There is a marvelous park (Luxembourg Gardens) that runs through the city, and is in a valley - which is great for photographs. There are a few non-descript museums and Villeroy & Boch is headquartered here, so you can visit the factory to see how the 250 year-old dishes and cups are made. Yawn.
Food is a big deal to the Luxembourgians, and for such a small place, they have more highly rated restaurants than anywhere else in the world. Restaurant menus are printed in the three spoken languages (and usually not in English), and contain foods that you would find in Belgium, France and Germany — so you’ve got a dizzying array of meals to choose from. The frites (potato fries) that are a delicious and crispy Belgian fare are seen everywhere, and go well with anything from a steak to a big bowl of mussels. You will also spot some highly unusual cuisine such as horse, which seems to be on every menu. So, if you see the words cheval on a menu, be warned that you’re eating Mr. Ed.
Unfortunately for Luxembourg, it does not seem to really want to cater to the tourist — and there is almost a feeling that they don’t want you in their country. There is little attempt to try to communicate with the common traveler in terms of the language barrier — even if you’re really, really trying. I happen to be able to speak several languages, and have gotten by very easily in Italy, Spain and other places. In tough moments, I’ve managed to connect with a native through a combination of hand gestures, a bit of English and a bit of the native tongue and we’ve managed to understand each other. The Luxembourgians don’t have much interest in this, however. There seems to be such a high level of culture here, that the people almost appear quite stand-offish or a bit uptight. It’s not the usual friendliness you see in other European countries, and you almost get the feeling that they’re giving you that what-are-you-doing-here? look.
Despite the distant attitude, if you’re a wheat beer drinker, you will feel as if you’ve landed in distillery heaven. A massive variety of Belgian beers with their large bottles and higher alcohol content abound here. We landed in a bar with a lovely bartender who was the first person who actually spoke to us in English our whole time there. We ordered a bowl of frites and swigged our brew and chatted about our flight home the following day.
I can’t think of any real reason to visit Luxembourg as a destination in itself, unless you happen to be doing some business travel there. It’s overshadowed by its geographical neighbors, which are truly places you should visit instead. So, no offense to the Luxembourgians, but if you’ve ever got a layover in their country, you may just want to sit tight and wait for your next plane to arrive. A Belgian beer at the airport will help you pass the time.