In May 2020, I decided to travel to Luxembourg
right after the country had reopened its borders.
In this video,
I want show you what traveling in Europe is like now
and share my top 10 things to do in Luxembourg city
during the new normal.
(upbeat music)
Good morning.
I'm inside the Central Station in Munich today
and the reason I'm here
is because we're going to Luxembourg.
And why Luxembourg?
Well, Luxembourg is one of the two only countries
in the world, right now that have opened their borders
to Germany because of the current situation.
It's gonna be an interesting trip.
Luxembourg is a funny little country,
one of the smallest countries in the world
and one of the richest countries in the world too.
So it might be interesting, let's catch our train.
(upbeat music)
So, we are inside the train now
and unfortunately, it's part of the new normal.
I got to wear a mask.
It's official and obligation now to wear masks
inside of trains in Germany.
So, yeah, eight hours of mask wearing now
until we get to Luxembourg.
It's gonna be pretty uncomfortable.
(upbeat music)
And this is it guys, we made it, this is Luxembourg.
(funky music)
So I think the best thing about this room
is definitely the view, check it out.
The "Gëlle Fra" or Golden Lady monument
is the first sight on my top 10 list.
It was created by the Luxembourgish sculptor, Claus Cito
in 1923 to commemorate the Luxembourgers
who fought with the French army during World War I.
Destroyed by the Nazi occupation force in 1940,
it was restored in 1984 and symbolizes the freedom
and independence of Luxembourg.
So, it's time to go and discover the city.
Luckily, I'm in the center so I can really
just walk over to the central square.
(country music)
Luxembourg's big central square, Place Guillaume II
is named after the second Grand Duke of Luxembourg.
The statue of the Grand Duke recalls the granting
of the first parliamentary constitution in 1848
which was then one of the most liberal in Europe.
Today, the square is an important public space
with a big farmers' market every Wednesday and Saturday.
(country music)
And now, I'm in front of the Hotel De Ville,
which is the mayor's office and it's completely empty,
like the entire square, it feels a bit like walking around
in a post-apocalyptic world.
After a short walk,
I reached one of the true showstopper sites of Luxembourg.
The Grand-Ducal Palace from the 16th century
is an example of the Flemish Renaissance style
and in my opinion it looks a bit like a Disney castle.
The palace is the official residence of the Grand Duke
and is used for his audiences in the capital.
The Grand Duke is the head of state of Luxembourg
which is the only remaining independent Grand Duchy
in the world.
What I can say already is that Luxembourg
is extremely picturesque,
all these tiny cobblestone streets,
the pretty medieval buildings.
It is definitely a beautiful place to visit.
Well, Saturday nights every restaurant are closed
all around.
(upbeat music)
And some of the rules.
They say you keep a two meter distance, in Germany is 1.50.
They're more strict here.
And of course, the mask and wash your hands.
I decided to get takeout food from a local burger place
since that was the only open restaurant I could find.
So yeah, I'm quite happy I got the burger.
So that's the food for tonight,
it really wasn't easy to find a restaurant that was open
but yeah, since it was takeout, its okay.
So let's go back to the hotel.
All right, and now it's time to dine in style.
Obviously in my room coz everything was still closed.
I got the chandelier right there,
And this view,
this is probably the best view
that I've ever had with a burger.
Welcome to the new normal.
The next morning, breakfast was brought to my room
because breakfast buffets were not allowed
and there weren't many other guests in the hotel anyways.
(upbeat music)
(funky music)
I started my day off by visiting the Corniche
which is number four on my list.
The Corniche is the most beautiful balcony in Europe
according to the Luxembourgish author, Batty Weber.
It was created on ramparts built in the 17th century
by the Spanish and French forces
that occupied the city back then.
(funky music)
And there you have it, the most beautiful balcony in Europe.
I can see why the poet said it like that, it is spectacular.
You can see the lower city called Grund from up here
and the new normal.
There's absolutely no one here on a Sunday,
on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
(funky music)
So now I'm standing in front of one of the most important
sites of Luxembourg City, it's the Bock Casemates.
This is an underground system of tunnels and passageways
were built into the rock over several centuries.
And they were used as garrisons,
they were used as a slaughterhouse, as bakeries,
and during World War I and World War II,
they sheltered more than 35,000 people.
So this is definitely a must see, but it's closed
because of the crisis.
So now I'm standing in front of the St. Michael's church,
which is the oldest church in Luxembourg.
Since it's consecration in 987, Saint Michael's Church
has been destroyed and rebuilt several times.
Its current form dates back to 1688.
I was very impressed by the mystical
and peaceful atmosphere inside.
(calm music)
And there behind me on the little balcony,
you can see the motto of Luxembourg,
Mir wëlle bleiwe wat mir sinn,
which translate to, we want to stay where we are,
which is really an understandable motto
for a country that was constantly invaded
with the big neighbors, France and Germany
occupied it several times.
So this is their motto, we want to stay where we are.
(upbeat music)
Now, we're gonna take a look inside
the National Museum of History and Art,
it's a combined art and history museum.
I'm quite excited, let's check it out.
(upbeat music)
All right, I'm inside now, I had to disinfect my hands
before they left me in.
The entry was free
because only the temporary exhibition are open.
(upbeat music)
The two temporary exhibitions that I saw were,
"Wiele wat mir Sinn" about the history of democracy
and the right to vote in Luxembourg
and "Brushed by Light"
which showed beautiful portrait photography
by the Dutch artist, Carla van de Puttelaar.
(upbeat music)
Whoa (clears throat)
It was a pretty nice visit despite the mask and everything.
The only thing that was kind of annoying
that I had to disinfect my hands like three times,
every time I entered into a new temporary exhibition,
but they had some really good ones.
(upbeat music)
All right, we're in a supermarket now trying to get
something for dinner, and maybe also some sparkling
wine from Luxembourg, let's see if we can find it
and of course the mask is obligatory.
(upbeat music)
All right, so we are back from the little shopping tour.
The good news is that they actually have
food from Luxembourg here at the hotel and then you gotta
bring it to my room,
I'm gonna try some Luxembourg specialties today.
(hotel staff speaking at a distance)
Okay, so it's dinnertime and we have a specialty
from Luxembourg, it's called Jud Mat Gaardebounen.
So it's basically green beans with pork.
And we got some potatoes, some sauce, and bread and water
It's quite an upgrade from yesterday's dinner
if you remember the burger that I had there.
And the dessert arrived, look at this, it's beautiful.
Apple pie with vanilla ice cream.
So one thing that feels really different
while traveling during these crisis times
is that there's absolutely nothing to do at night.
So now it's 7:30 and usually,
I would now go out to a restaurant or a bar,
or try to meet up with someone from couchsurfing
or maybe meet a girl from Tinder.
And none of that is possible.
I reached out to people from couchsurfing,
but, yeah, none of them replied.
I guess they probably haven't even logged in,
in the last few months because they don't expect
any tourists.
So luxembourg is famous for white wine
and sparkling wine called cremant.
And of course, a trip to Luxembourg wouldn't be complete
without trying some cremant.
(wine bottle popping) Ooh, there we go.
(funky music)
So I think it's time to put that bathtub to use
that we have here in this room, let's go.
Here it is, so let's turn on the water, waiting.
(water rushing over speaker's voice)
So it's all ready now, let's jump on in.
Once again, cheers.
And let's make the most of the new normal.
(funky music)
So I packed my things and I'm ready to go now,
check out and then we have a few more hours
to spend in Luxembourg City before taking the train.
Completely empty, as usual.
I left my bags and I'll try to see
the neighborhood of Grund
and maybe also the Notre Dame Church.
Now let's see if it's open.
(religious music)
Notre-Dame Cathedral was originally the church
of a Jesuit Monastery founded in 1613.
It is a remarkable example of the late Gothic style.
The statue of Our Lady of Luxembourg,
the Patron Saint of the city and country
can be found in this church
as well as the tombs of the Grand Dukes of Luxembourg.
(religious music)
All right, so I just came out of the church,
so I can take off the mask and if you're in Luxembourg,
I highly recommend visiting this one.
This is probably one of the most beautiful churches
that I've ever seen, and it's an amazing place.
(adventure music)
This city is so beautiful,
I feel like I'm walking around in a fairy tale village.
This is incredible.
(adventure music)
The charming Grund area
is the heart of Luxembourg's lower town
and offers a beautiful mix of architecture and nature.
It is one of the oldest neighborhoods of the city
and dates back to the 10th century.
The most impressive building in this area
is the Neumünster Abbey which was built in 1606.
So here in the Grund, you walk around
and you think you've seen the most
picturesque thing already,
but then you turn a corner
and then you see something that's even better.
(adventure music)
As I was walking along the route
where I met this beautiful lady here.
Her name is Melusina.
And the legend goes that the founder of Luxembourg City,
Siegfried was married to Melusina
and she was secretly a mermaid.
And she made him promise to never spy on her
so that her secret would be safe.
But one day, Siegfried actually broke his promise
and Melusina got so upset that she jumped
from the Bock, from the castle into the Azat River here
and was never seen again.
(soft music)
So after being here for two days,
would I say that Luxembourg is a good choice
to visit in the new normal?
I would say 100% yes,
it's a beautiful city.
There's lots of things to do outside,
you can walk around for hours
discovering the different neighborhoods,
and one is really more picturesque than the other.
Most of the best museums are open.
So if you're into art, that's also great plus,
and also the shops are all starting to reopen now.
So if you're into shopping,
that might also be a good choice.
I would recommend visiting tourist office when you arrive
to ask what exactly is open and what's still closed.
And apart from that,
I hope you have a great time in Luxembourg.