Saturday 17 June 2017

Luxembourg

I am so happy to tell you that we are not yet done with new countries! Last week we were in Belgium and today I will take you to the last of the Benelux countries - the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.


To be more specific, we will visit the capital of Luxembourg, called (what a Swiss idea) Luxembourg as well. The city of Luxembourg is over a thousand years old.


The reason why the country is called "Grand Duchy" is because it is ruled by the Grand Duc who lives, no surprises, in the Grand Ducal Palace.


The emblems on the front porch represents the lion from the coat of arms of Luxembourg.


Obviously in twenty first century Grand Duc is not having an autocratic rule. The country has a parliament and a government. They are located in buildings adjacent to the palace.


The Town Hall of the city of Luxembourg is also a few steps away.


In front of the Town Hall you will find the statue of William II (and his horse!) who ruled Luxembourg in the middle of the nineteenth century and gave the country its first constitution.


What I liked in particular about the constitution of Luxembourg is that since many years the ducal title could be also inherited by women. One of the most respected was Grand Duchesse Charlotte whose statue is also in the city center of Luxembourg.


The city of Luxembourg is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.


The listing includes the old quarters and the fortifications. Mostly the latter I guess. Let's take one of the many narrow streets and head towards the city walls.


And here they come - the monumental city walls of Luxembourg.


Deep below you see the Pétrusse river, bordered by nice houses and small gardens. You can see them on the right ...


... and on the left. The tower next to the river belongs to the Neimënster Abbey.


To cross the river one needed of course to use a bridge. In the old days, this had to be the Old Bridge.


On the other side of the valley you can see a castle. I tried hard to find out what castle it is but I was not successful. Any suggestion, dear readers?


The clouds are getting darker and darker. Let's return to the city and look for a nice and cosy cafe we could rest in.


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