It's been two months since I shared my last trip with you. The reason for it simple though. There is so much to do this year that we don't get to travel at all. Between visiting our families, taking care of the garden and other things we don't have neither the time nor the energy to travel. However, we have a short trip planned at the end of April and I can't wait to take you (even only virtually) with us!
Today, I will show you around Luxembourg ville. In the past, I showed you around the Grund, but now I will take you to the Ville Haute or the Upper Town. Luxembourg has a special place in my heart and although many people might find it too small or too boring I do believe that everyone can find something interesting there. There is a large international community and it's so easy to make friends there. We used to travel to Luxembourg several times each year, but now we're happy when we manage one trip per year. Life happens and we simply have to go along with it.
We will start our tour at The Plateau Bourbon with the grandeur building of the Savings Bank. To me it looks like an old castle or a palace, but in fact it is only over 100 years old. It was built after the construction of The Adolphe bridge which connects this part of the city with Ville Haute.
On the other side of the road is a similar building which also belongs to the bank. They were both built at the request of the Luxembourg government to create a monumental building in this avenue. If you continue down the avenue you will get to the main train station.
The Adolphe bridge is a popular place in Luxembourg as you can enjoy great views of the city when you're crossing it. It is also a part of the official trails of the city. There are always some people standing at various places taking photos and I enjoy joining them and being a tourist for a moment. Well, I don't live in Luxembourg, but I don't consider myself a tourist when I'm there either.
It was a windy and cold day, so I didn't spend much time on the bridge but I couldn't miss to take a photo of this cute pixel Smurf.
Luxembourg is one of the greenest cities that I have ever visited. When you walk in one of the large parks you feel like in the middle of the forest.
When you walk on the city walls there are a few viewing platforms. One of them is The Platz der Nation with the view of the bank and a park called Garden Luxembourg. I have tried to get to the garden, but didn't find the entrance.
At the time of its construction the Alphonse bridge had the biggest stone arch in the world.
This photo reminds me of the Hohenzollern castle in Germany. Of course, the castle looks very different, but it is also surrounded by the woods and it's somehow what I thought about when I saw this photo.
We're approaching The Cathedrale Notre Dame which is regularly visited also by the Grand Duke of Luxembourg.
Not so long ago I thought that Notre Dame was only in Paris. I had no idea that it actually meant Our Lady, and that every church/cathedral dedicated to our lady in French speaking countries would be called a Notre Dame 😊
Let's go inside!
I remember when I visited the cathedral for the first time I was not very impressed. It is large, but rather empty. It doesn't look like a typical Catholic church, and I wonder if the reason is that it was built by Jesuits, and maybe left like this after it became a Catholic church.
However, the stained glass windows are impressive. I like the colors playing around the cathedral in the afternoon. It was pretty!
There is so little decoration, so the stained glass windows really stand out. The stone pillars have interesting patterns, and to me it looks much older than it actually is. It only dates back to the 17th century, so it's one of the younger churches.
Look at the delicate stone work around the arches...
The William Square is only a few steps away from the Cathedral. This is probably the most lively square in Luxembourg ville. There is the Town Hall building, the tourist office, and many events are organized here too.
The square is dominated by a large statue of William II - King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg.
It was surprisingly quiet when I visited, but people kept coming out of the parking garage, so I didn't have a chance to take a photo without a person in it. But later I noticed that there is also a plane in this photo! Can you see it?
The Town Hall building looks like a beautiful mansion. The bronze lions on both sides of the staircase were added about 100 years ago. In the past, there used to be a monastery in this place, but the building was dismantled and replaced. Town Hall
The shopping part of the city is right behind the corner of the Town Hall. You can find all major brands that you would find in any other European city.
At first I thought I would go inside of this church, but then I realized it was under reconstruction. However, there was a door on one side of the church which led me to a cool cafe! What a great idea!
The war memorial is one of those places that you can't miss when you go on a walk in Luxembourg. It's in the central location and I'm almost certain that all walking trails get here at some point. It is called The Monument of Remembrance, but it is more known as Gëlle Fra or the Golden lady. In my opinion, it is a pity that it is surrounded by a large parking area as it would deserve more respect.
I think I found my favorite street in Luxembourg! It makes me think of Prague, and I love that little arch in the back.
There are so many churches in such a small place...
I have also come across some funny details...
And butterflies! Last time when I visited the city there were colorful umbrellas hanging across the city. This time it was butterflies and I wonder what we will see next.
I have also found some cute corners. If the restaurant would be open at that time I would definitely go inside.
Whatever this is...
And finally I found a place to sit down and warm a little bit. It was so cute with wooden details and dried meadow flowers.
And did I mention they had delicious cakes? YUM!
As I've been talking about parks it wouldn't be right not to take you to one of them, and that cake was heavy too, so a little walk would do me good...
Let's walk around!
Could it be more green?
If I would live here I would probably go to the valley everyday. I would even start jogging if there would be such trails around me 😊
After the walk I returned to the hotel to get ready for dinner with our friends. It was such a nice day, and I'm looking forward to visit the city again.
Thank you for reading!
Cheers,
Martina