Luxemburg (not Lewisburg)

Finally I have found a few minutes to write about my short, but nonetheless interesting travels. While I say interesting, I mean that in broad sense, for parts of the travels provided not so many astounding memories. Thursday, May 24th was the first day of my adventures. To be frank, however, this is perhaps the one day that indeed proved to be more unremarkable than hoped. As mentioned in a previous blog, this day was devoted to visiting the tiny country of Luxemburg. Ever heard of it? If you’re genuinely American (meaning you eat at least one fried item of food per day, think Bud Light is the nectar of the gods, enjoy watching racing, and go to Wal-Mart at least three times a week), then the answer is probably no. And, if it is yes, when locating it on a map, you might place it somewhere close to Argentina or Afghanistan ;) Kidding, kidding, kidding! Next time you’re around a map look west of Germany. If you hit the Atlantic Ocean, you’ve gone too far. Back up and search for the intersection of Belgium, France, and Germany-there’s Luxemburg. It looks so small on the map because it is so small in reality. In fact the entire nation is only about twice as large as New York City.
The capital city of Luxemburg is Luxemburg, the target of day tour of the country. Beginning with a visit of and dazzling power-point presentation concerning the European Court of Auditors, the watchdog of spending within European Union. Though the European Union is a deeply fascinating political community, the Court of Auditors left me somewhat…unsatisfied. Afterwards, we were left to our own devices for several hours. I spent the remainder of my time in the capital wandering with three Italians, which proved to be the most interesting part of the trip. It also had its advantages. Currently, Luxemburg boasts three official languages: French, German, and Luxemburgish. While I have only briefly consulted Wikipedia for my information, I’ve heard that education in the country begins in Luxemburgish before switching to German and later on to French. Each language has its own sphere of relevance (for instance, most public writings are in French). Nevertheless, natives to the country theoretically have a good grasp on at least German or French, if not all three. It was interesting to hear so many individuals switching from one language to the next.
Sadly, much of the city was blocked off due to a visit by Russian president Vladimir Putin. The occasion, however, brought numerous armed soldiers to the city, thus adding some spice to the cityscape. The architecture of the area seemed too modern and unimpressive, lacking the history and character that can be seen in the buildings of other cities throughout Europe.
So, after walking through the insanely clean and expensive streets of Luxemburg, we boarded the bus back to Germany, stopping in a small village of the Mosel Valley, an area known for wine. Here, we had a small wine tasting and tour of a wine distillery. This portion of the trip lasted just long enough for a student to knock a bottle of wine on the floor. Then, armed with a bottle of Riesling Spätlese and a finely-tuned tan, I jumped on board of our charter bus and traveled back to Mainz.