Posted by Will on September 1st, 2010 in consumer, culture and luxembourg
“The Big One-Day Retail Sale is dead.” If someone told me that, I’d find it quite plausible. Between “Low Prices All the Time” and Amazon.com, I wouldn’t expect a frugal (American) consumer to wait for a sale to purchase something. You might wait for the next generation of a gadget, or check prices all over, but to wait for a big sale with a specific date in the future?
When I see an ad for a one-day sale,
I assume it’s little more than a scam to create false urgency.
Oh, there’s Black Friday, of course. (And Woot, I guess.) But even the post-holiday sales have been lackluster for years. The upcoming Labor Day sales seem more like an excuse for lazy advertising than a real chance to score a bargain.
“Not so, in Luxembourg,” I was told, by several Luxembourgers. “You must go to the Braderie on Monday. Stuff is really cheap. All the stores will have bargains.” All the stores? You mean that they cooperate and all have sales on the same day? “Yes,” they said, “It’s always the same. Go to the Ville-Haute.” Continue reading “Your great-great-great-great-great-grandfather’s Labor Day sale”
Posted by Will on August 27th, 2010 in luxembourg and news
First, the news of the last several days, courtesy ARA City Radio. Please note the changed link to their local news. Also note that the headlines are our own editorial responsibility.
- Lots of news from the Luxembourgish Department of Obviousness
- CEPS/Instead has been conducting a survey into attitudes to immigrants. For the first time they’ve looked to see if men and women have different feelings about migrants here, and also what immigrants themselves think of other immigrants. The survey found that both men and women are equally concerned over the impact of immigrants on Luxembourg society. Immigrant men and women worry that more immigration will mean more competition for jobs. Indigenous men and women seem more worried about their impact on social security and crime figures. But second generation immigrants seem to start sharing the concerns of the indigenous population the longer they live here.
- And in another important piece of social research, National Statistics Bureau STATEC has discovered that wealthy people are generally happy. Researchers say people with high incomes feel better about life than those who struggle financially. 94% of people in the survey’s top income bracket said they satisfied with their life. Only 71% of the poorest surveyed said things were going their way. But its not just about money, the researchers say. They also found that the more educated a respondent was, the more likely they were to feel positive about life.
- Unions and Employers: Fighting together against change
- Unions and Employers have joined forces to condemn proposed legislation to prevent harassment at work. LSAP deputy Lucien Lux has been trying to get his legislation adopted for nearly 9 years. Continue reading “Best of the Week: News, 27 August 2010″
Posted by Will on August 24th, 2010 in entertainment, europe, photos and travel
You 
may remember that, this May, we celebrated our long-term success with a cruise. Now, our short-term delay in posting our photos from that cruise has come to an end!
As usual, we’ll release photosets on Flickr with extensive captions — one or two days at a time. We wouldn’t want to overwhelm you! To begin, you can enjoy our pictures of the first two days, as we travel to Venice, board the ship, and thrill to the sailaway down the Guidecca Canal. You’ll see parts of our Crown Princess cruise ship, the city of Venice from dozens of high angles, and a few other treats.
If that description isn’t enough to tempt you, Continue reading “Cruise photos, at last!”
Posted by Will on August 18th, 2010 in culture, entertainment, luxembourg and photos
In
just two days, Luxembourg will hold the 670th annual Schueberfouer.
Try to wrap your mind around a tradition that old. More than 30 generations.
As an ex-pat, I’m interested in looking at it from the perspective of cultural integration — or how long it takes to be considered a native. Continue reading “Get ready for Schueberfouer!”
Posted by Anita on August 17th, 2010 in culture, europe and mental state
…you are stunned each time that somebody thinks your Visa has expired because it is dated 04/09/2010.
Culture consists, in part, of the customs that you take for granted. So we know that we’re adapting to European culture (or Western European or French-inflected or whatever) when we’re surprised by how things are done in the good ole USA. Some more examples: You know you’ve settled into a European state of mind when…
- You find it unspeakably rude when, at a restaurant, your server brings you the check before you ask for it.
- “Of course it’s a topless beach. Why not?”
- You are uncomfortable when someone takes your credit card out of your sight.
- You get frustrated at having to sign a bill for small purchases with your credit card.
- You are excited to find a parking space within a quarter-mile of your destination.
We think of these little differences several times a week, and we’ll post more in the future. Guests of the B&B, what seemed alien to you about daily life in Ireland and Luxembourg?
Posted by Will on July 21st, 2010 in europe, france, sports and video
Many, many people do crazy, crazy things to attract the cameras covering the Tour de France.
Now that you’ve seen the photos from my first appearance at the Tour, take a look at how the media covered my presence.
Due to my local renown, all I must do to appear on the broadcast is stand near the course. Continue reading “Will Bakker, International TV star”
Posted by Will on July 20th, 2010 in europe, france, luxembourg, photos and sports
This year’s Tour de France is one of the most exciting in recent memory, especially after yesterday’s events.
Two weeks ago, the Tour began with a few stages in Holland and Belgium. I attended two stages within a two-hour drive from Luxembourg.
First up, the Bruxelles-Spa stage, which was the first day of a real bloodbath that set the tone of the Tour until it reached the Alps. Here’s the link to the slideshow, which includes thorough notes on the drama of the day. (If you don’t see the descriptions, click on “Show Info” in the top-right corner.)
A 90 minute drive brought my companions and me to a wet and windy spot in Basse-Bodeux, Belgium. Continue reading “Tour de France: Way Back in Belgium”
Posted by Anita on July 7th, 2010 in europe, germany, photos and travel
Technically, we arrived in Baden-Baden at the end of a long day two. We checked into our hotel, found a lovely place to dine al fresco (with blankets to help keep us warm in the chilly May air) and enjoyed a relaxing night after a busy and interesting day. We retired early, intending to spend the day exploring the town and possibly a bit of the Black Forest south of town.
The BBB&B favorite guide Rick had a walk through Baden-Baden that hit all the major (and some of the minor) sights. The photoset will take you through the details, but I thought I would give you a preview of some of the lovely things. Continue reading “German adventures, Day 3: Baden-Baden and tantrums”
Posted by Will on June 30th, 2010 in culture, europe and travel
Anita enjoys visiting Holland, in part because many television programs are subtitled in Dutch but keep their original English audio tracks. Tonight, RTL 7‘s prime-time movie is Monster Ark, written and directed by Declan O’Brien. Here is an excerpt from a review by Gorepress that both of us enthusiastically endorse:
Monster Ark is ridiculous, but not in a good way. It is shoddily made, terribly scripted, blindly dumb and tragically dull. Even for a straight-to-TV movie it lacks depth, intelligence and charm. … It basically becomes a vomiting cliché-ticking mixture of Tomb Raider and Indiana Jones, which it shamelessly and liberally plagiarizes from. The film manages to insult anyone religious, the entire U.S. Army, all archaeologists, every pioneer of CGI and its audience’s intelligence.
(By the way, the review is worth reading on its own. Take a look when you have a moment and keep it mind that it does not exaggerate, in any way, the awfulness of this program.)
As children of the USA, both of us understand how such a movie could be made and distributed on the Scyfy channel. The mystery is how it winds up in Europe. Continue reading “Mysteries of Europe #42: Why oh why?”
Posted by Will on June 22nd, 2010 in culture, entertainment and luxembourg
Tomorrow, June 23, is Luxembourg’s national holiday. The big party is tonight, in anticipation of the torch-parade and the fireworks display just before midnight. We had a great time last year, as we shared on this blog: Post 1, Post 2, Post 3. In preparation for National Day 2010, we offer you a bit of history, cribbed from the City of Luxembourg’s website. Continue reading “A little history of National Day”
I assume it’s little more than a scam to create false urgency.
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