First, we need to finish the previous post and give you the link to our movie of Kleeschen.
In the US, chocolate eggs were for springtime, specifically Easter. In Europe, eggs are for nearly every holiday, including Christmas. Furthermore, the most super-cool eggs of all, Kinder Surprises, cannot be brought to the United States! We made this video to give Americans an idea of what you’re missing. (more…)
31 December 2011
Wrapping up the holiday season
27 November 2011
Something for the kids
One thing that holds true across the Western world as we know it: Christmas is devoted to the children. And here in Luxembourg, there’s no Thanksgiving to hold up the beginning of the festivities. Shortly after All Saints’ Day (Nov 1st), the holiday decorations went up. All the leaves are down, and the sky is gray — so why not get started?
The first trimmings I noticed were in a Luxembourg shopping mall, just outside the city. The sights began on the way down the escalator from the car park, and the theme was clear from the outset.
(more…)
4 August 2011
Going native — for the moment
When we moved to Dublin, just over four years ago, I had many coats. Unfortunately, all of them were far more appropriate to the temperatures and seasons of Chicagoland. I found myself in Ireland either dry, but cold, or wet, but warm. I could never hit the sweet spot of warm and dry.
Not long after we moved, we spend a weekend with close friends in Galway, on the west coast of Ireland. For those that may have forgotten, Galway is even more wet that Dublin. During our visit, our hosts extolled the virtues of their jackets – the L.L. Bean Weather Channel 3-1 coat. This coat was created for the Weather Channel folks when they were out in the field. It seemed ideal for travel in Ireland (and in Europe). My mom was visiting Dublin not long after that, so I had her order one for me.
Some of you may remember the green jacket that makes me easy to find in a crowd. (As opposed to Will’s silly black outerwear, which he uses to slip away, unnoticed, into crowds of style-conscious European tourists.) Often, I would wear just the fleece layer, taking advantage of the versatile three-in-one nature of the jacket. On the right, you can see me sporting the green on a pleasant late-spring day in the Netherlands. (more…)
29 March 2011
Europe >= America, episode 1: Coke Zero
Anyone that spends thirty minutes with me will learn that I love soda, specifically products made by the Coca-Cola company.
In the past, I was a Diet Coke gal, but then Coke Zero stole my heart.
Anyone that spends a day with me will realize that caffeine has a powerful effect on my system. In the US and Ireland, I tried to manage that by drinking caffeine-free Diet Coke as much as possible.
Then we moved to Luxembourg. (more…)
10 March 2011
Killing us softly…..
I love cut flowers, especially the spring bulbs (tulips and hyacinths) and the summer garden flowers (zinnias and the like). Unfortunately, cut flowers can be a bit pricey here in Luxembourg, so I was having to make do with the occasional (and small) bunch of Gerber daisies.
But recently, we have been going to the Farmer’s Market at Place Guillaume. The market is open on Saturday mornings and we love getting some fresh produce, delicious apple juice for Will and cut flowers for me.
The prices are so reasonable, I’ve been going…. well… a little flower crazy.
Hence last week’s purchases:
This was taken five days post-purchase, so they aren’t at their very best. But aren’t they beautiful? Beautiful…. but deadly! (more…)
3 March 2011
Boring food, just as I hoped
When the Bugle staff consider blog topics regarding food, they typically look for exotic or superior products and experiences that might be rare on other continents.
Today, it’s time to recognize the countless products that emulate American favorites. The much-beloved hamburger is a great place to start. We’ll leave the much-disputed history of the hamburger to other information dispensaries. Instead, Will agreed to buy, cook and eat a microwaveable hamburger produced in the British Isles.
Rustlers is the name, and the microwave is its range. From plastic packaging to hot and tasty in seconds, it claims. (more…)
9 February 2011
Luxembourg Culture – off the vine
Some of us continued our trend of getting out to local Luxembourg-ville events this weekend. Some of us had the stomach flu and had to stay home. Which would you prefer to hear about, loyal Bugle followers? (more…)
20 January 2011
Living, in the pantry
Contrary to what you see most of the time here at the Bugle, our lives are not completely filled with travel, history and fun. In fact, most of our time is spent working and maintaining our domestic world here in Luxembourg.
For those who haven’t been counting, we have lived in Luxembourg for just over a year and a half. In the last 20 months, we’ve created a home that we love and enjoy.
Except for the pantry. (more…)
22 October 2010
Best Shopping Day of 2010
Last Saturday, totally out of the blue, Will and I had the best shopping day ever, or at least of 2010. Here’s our story:
It’s a special time of the year in Luxembourg – it is the fall wine season. Our preferred grocery store had issued a special flyer listing all the wines that would be available.
Will took his responsibilities seriously. Like a young boy with the Sears Wishbook, he sat down with the flyer, his Hachette guide and a fresh sharpie. His goal – find excellent wines at a reasonable price for us to sample.
There were several that he was excited about.
(more…)
15 October 2010
Wéi seet een “boneless pork patty” op Lëtzebuergesch?
How do you say “McRib” in Luxembourgish?
Last weekend, Anita spied the McRib on a McDonald’s menu in Ingeldorf, Luxembourg.
“That’s interesting,” she said, “I remember reading that the McRib isn’t widely available in the US.”
“Me too,” I said, “But maybe I’m just thinking of that Simpsons episode.” And so the situation passed into our long list of Notable Oddities Here in Europe.
Serendipity had other plans, however. 
She waved her hands and lo, on Monday, the Wall Street Journal published an article on American fans of the McRib who track its ephemeral appearance across the nation. (It’s a pretty good read, as these things go.)
There are blog posts and fan sites devoted to the McRib, of course. (And some of them will burn your eyeballs, of course.) And this is 2010, so there’s a social network which maintains a McRib Locator. There’s quite a bit of information available on the McRib, easily accessed via google. I’m not sure how to feel about that.
Still, once Anita sent me the article, I knew that I had to return to Ingeldorf. For you, dear readers, I would find and eat a McRib. (more…)