latenight Luxembourg

really, this and the last entry were in the same day. about that 'getting up early' nonsense: yeah, kinda stumbled upstairs around 4am and didn't wake up until noon. then i had to finish packing. time swept by and it was 5pm before i left Tübingen.

so, bought the rail-pass in Stuttgart and didn't leave there until 8pm. yup, that gets me arriving in Luxembourg at 2am. and i left the directions to the youth hostel in Tübingen. thank god for Google. i vaguely remembered what the map looked like and recognized a streetname when i hopped on a night bus with no clue where it was going. add in luck that the bus driver was younger, cute and spoke German.

[Umsteigen irgendwo in Saarbrucken und ohne ein Gebäude während es schneite]

there was something in the bus driver's attitude that pleased me, reminded me of working overnight at Sheetz. gotta love night owls. i didn't feel the slightest bit out of place wandering blindly late at night in a city that mainly spoke French. the snow added a nice touch. i got off the bus and walked under this massive stone bridge by lamplight down a cobblestone path.

[Brücke von der Eisenbahn]

after the solitude of traveling alone, i had my first shock by throwing myself into a youth hostel dormroom full of girls sound asleep. i didn't bother trying to dress the bed in the dark, just put on my sweatpants and crashed. in addition to being the last arriving, i was the first to wake up. breakfast started at 6am. i woke up at 6, took a shower and headed downstairs for food. came back upstairs, one girl was awake and the others were still asleep. i began to realize that this little excursion might not be average, sorted out my baggage and checked out at 9.

[der Alzette]

i leisurely took photos, but walked in the general direction of the train station (which was not the route of the bus the night before), planning to get a glimpse of the schedule and call my host from CouchSurfing before i tryed getting into touristy things.

turns out that i forgot how short winter days are. i told the host i would arrive in the afternoon, meaning while it was still daylight. to get to Belgium by then, i would have to take the 1pm train. i decided that i didn't have time to try finding certain attractions and set out from the train station just wandering.

[Avenue de la Liberté und Avenue de la Gare]

criticize the brevity of my visit to Luxembourg all you want. you might be surprised how much i managed to get out of it. Luxembourg has the beauty of France without being too frilly, plus a touch of Germany and being nestled in gentle hills. not quite as harsh and Pittsburgh. nestled in, not draped over. i am careful with my descriptions, mind you.

i really do wish i had more time there. it's all my fault, but i take it as my little glimpse that motivates me to return.