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Night Location: Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Song of the Day: Paradise - Coldplay (Go the new album!)
Mumisode of the Day: "AAARRGGHHH!" More details later.
Luxembourg is a beautiful city. The hotel that we are staying in is on the banks of the gorge that runs through the city. We have a fantastic view of bridges and are able to hear bells tolling all morning. The hotel breakfast cost 20 euro per person - crazy bankers, so we decided to give this a miss and went in search of sustenance in the old part of the city. We quickly found a cafe with amazing pastries and coffee and sat in the street watching various dogs go past. Our favourite had a shoe and just stopped in the middle of the street while his owner kept walking until he ran out of lead.
Today was also market day. It was really impressive to see such good quality items for sale. We all wish that Australia was just a little bit closer as we would have stocked up on quite a few things. Purchased some strawberries, locally grown in America and sat and ate them while overlooking the gorge in the Piazza de Constitution. An interesting find here was a war memorial dedicated to fallen soldiers from WWII. The plaque reads: "This is to remind us of the brutal act of the Nazi occupant, who, in destroying this monument on October 21st, 1940, turned it into a symbol of our freedom thus sparking off the desperate resistance of a deeply humiliated nation whose only weapon was its bravery."
The cathedral was also explored. Amber is quite the investigator and was able to tell us that it had been extended due to the difference in architecture. From here we headed toward the Corniche, the old ramparts of the city. You get a fantastic view of the original city walls and ancient part of the city including the casements. The casements are the foundation of the original Luxembourg castle and were used by the local people to shelter during the war. Apparently over 35000 people were able to hide in the casements during the air raids of WWII.
We were able to access the casements that were a series of tunnels and spiral stone staircases with slits for guns and cannons and small hiding spots. It would be very easy to get lost down there. Amber used one of the hiding spots to its full advantage and hid. As Mum was walking past the hiding spot, Amber reached out and grabbed her firmly by the arm. "AAARRGGHHH!" Mum gasped as she staggered forward. Apparently her heart almost stopped and she felt weak in the knees. Everyone else thought this was the funniest thing they had seen in a long time, especially Amber who had seen - close up - the horrified expression on Mum's face because she thought that one of the Nazis had come to get her.
It was getting late in the afternoon by this stage so there was a desperate rush to try and find some lunch as David was fading. After lunch we went our separate ways. Amber and David crossed over the bridge and explored the other side of the town complete with rose garden. The sun was out and it was almost a balmy afternoon at 19 degrees. Gemma, Mum and Dad walked through the main city park and then went to see the old castle ruins of Beaufort and Echtenart.
During their travels, Amber and David were very excited to find a Mexican restaurant so there is no prize for guessing what we ate for dinner. Lots of yummy Mexican, complete with guacamole!
Tomorrow we are on to Gent via a cave!
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