User’s Guide: What the U.S. Embassy Wants You to Know

Read their brochure.

About three years ago, a small group of Americans walked up to the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg and rang the buzzer to alert the guard. When he answered, they announced that they were there for dinner. It was Thanksgiving, after all, and they had heard that the Ambassador always prepared a large holiday feast for all U.S. citizens in the area.

While the U.S. Embassy offers a number of services to Americans living in Luxembourg, an all-you-can-eat Thanksgiving buffet is not one of them. (Though I definitely think they should reconsider this policy, don’t you?)

So just what is the Embassy good for, if not for a decent slice of turkey? I had the opportunity recently to sit down with David Fetter, the Embassy’s chargé d’affairs (i.e. the guy holding down the fort until the new Ambassador arrives in a week or so) and Dr. Stephanie Shaheen, the Embassy’s public affairs officer, to ask a few questions, like: When is it appropriate to go to the Embassy with a problem, and when it is not? How long should a person expect to wait for a response from the Embassy? and Why doesn’t the Embassy ever update its web site?

Weekend Roundup, Oct. 28-30

I’m headed back to ARA City Radio (103.3 and 105.2) this morning with City Magazine’s November cover model (!), Sara Flanagan again this morning around 10am with a few highlights, and I hope you can tune in! Because there’s so much going on in Luxembourg this weekend, it’s scary.

No, really: it’s scary. There are plenty of events around town this weekend for children and adults who want to celebrate the American tradition of Halloween, from a spooky castle tour to horror films and chances to get freaky on the dance floor. The Wort/English has a great list at this link. 

But there’s one Halloween treat that’s not a trick: daylight savings time ends this weekend, so clocks fall back one hour. After all of that spooking, you’re going to need that extra hour to get some rest.

Vacationing with Vauban

Cancale oysters, fresh from the ocean.

Three weeks ago, Nick and I were on the Brittany coast of France, in the town of Cancale, sitting in the sunshine on concrete steps and slurping raw oysters pulled fresh from the ocean, pried open by women who spend their entire day shucking oysters of all sizes and shapes for locals and tourists who visit their stands. There are normal-looking oysters for the ridiculously inexpensive price of 5€ to 8€ a dozen, and there are also oysters for sale as large as your hand that you’ll wonder how in the world people eat without dripping oyster liquor all over themselves. Then there are the briny Plate-Belons, les plates, the flat regional specialties that the women will tell you to eat as they are; you won’t even be allowed to buy a lemon to take away with your douziane. And no matter which stand you buy your huîtres, you’ll hear the same advice: when you’re finished eating, oyster shells get tossed into the sea; lemon rinds and plastic plates and knives go back to the stand.

What a lineup!

When the tide is high, those concrete steps disappear into the ocean. When the tide is out, sailboats sink lazily into the muddy floor of the Bay of Mont-Saint-Michel. Nearby, men in waterproof bucket pants work the oyster beds on foot or by tractor, meters from where the fruits of their labor are distributed to happy stomachs. All day long, the silhouette of Mont-Saint-Michel sits on the horizon, an especially breathtaking sight against the tangerine glow of sunrise.

Even though it ends in an “r” – as the best oyster-eating months do – October is the off season in Cancale. Which is why we love it there. It’s the only place we’ve been to twice on vacation while living in Europe. I mean, let’s face it: fall colors + quiet seaside town + cheap, fresh oysters + the most unreal deep turquoise ocean you’ve ever seen, well, that all adds up to a pretty stellar vacation for this household.

Oyster beds in Cancale

Lest you think I’m in cahoots with the Cancale Tourism Office by using fancy phrases like “tangerine glow” to describe the sunrise, this post isn’t actually about my vacation. It’s actually about something interesting I learned while on vacation that ties back to Luxembourg.

(But I’m including a few more Cancale tidbits at the end of the post, in case you want to go.)

Weekend Roundup, Oct. 21-23

This face was meant for radio and today, it's going to do just that: I'm making my debut this morning on Luxembourg's ARA City Radio for a very brief, shining moment during Sara Flanagan's 9-11am block to plug a couple of events going on this weekend in Luxembourg. This might be my only shot at radio fame, so wish me luck! (If it goes badly, at least Urban is on my way home.) 

Or, instead of wishing me luck, perhaps you could help everyone else out and chime in below? Overall, I have to say that this is a pretty awesome weekend to be a kid in Luxembourg (check out the Saturday events). But what other activities should be included in the Weekend Roundup that you've got your eye on? 

User’s Guide: Getting to Germany for a Klein Price

Over the past several months, I’ve shared tips for getting to Paris (and the rest of France) on the cheap, I’ve told you how to get to and from Luxembourg on Ryanair, and I’ve told you how to visit wineries in Provence via public bus.

Now, it’s Germany’s turn. And there are a lot of wunderbar deals to be had on the Deutsche Bahn (DB). Of course, the standard rule applies: the earlier you can book, the better your chances of scoring a cheaper ticket from Luxembourg. But there are several ways you can be creative about booking your travel, and several options for last minute trips from Luxembourg Ville.

The Mythbuster Tour

It’s taken me two days to sit down and write this post because I haven’t been able to walk to my computer.

Okay, that’s a slight exaggeration, but my legs have been a bit sore. That’s because Nick and I did a Very Awesome Thing this past Sunday: we went on a 6.5 hour guided walking tour around the former fortress fortification lines of Luxembourg Ville.

It’s a program that has been offered once a year for the past four years by the Luxembourg City History Museum and this year, I happened to stumble upon it on the museum’s web site. (A notice also appeared in Lux Ville’s CityMag; order your free subscription by e-mailing your Lux mailing address to citymag@vdl.lu.)

The walk was essentially a combination of the Vauban and Wenzel city walks, with some passages through outlying neighborhoods thrown in for good measure. There were only nine people in the English-speaking group including Nick and myself, so I’m guessing that you may not have been able to make it to the event. But don’t worry, I’ve got a few fun facts from our fabulous, fearless guide to share that will make you feel like you went along for the tour...

Bragging Rights for the Unathletic

As a newlywed, there are certain things you agree to because you think your significant other will eventually forget about them. Like riding your bicycle halfway across the country.

A few weekends ago, we finally completed a ride that Nick has wanted to do for over a year: the Piste Cyclable 2, a bike path that stretches from Luxembourg Ville to Echternach on the Luxembourg-Germany border, a one-way ride of 42 kilometers. It wouldn’t be our longest ride ever, but I was nervous because we had ridden part of this path last summer; I remembered more than one large hill, and had a nagging fear that there could be a lot more. And if there’s one thing that this House Frau does not like, it’s hills. (This would be in addition to wind and rain, if you’re asking.)

While I secretly prayed for a thunderstorm, we went ahead and made plans to ride to Echternach on a Saturday and spend the night. On Sunday, we would cycle home along the Sûre River on Piste Cyclable 3, a short 24km and mostly flat ride to the Wasserbillig train station where we’d catch a train back to the city.