I pray your indulgence as I attempt to articulate my present stage in learning French.
I came to Luxembourg with a dim memory of taking advanced French in high-school, and a few hours of practice during trips to Paris and Nice. It wasn’t long before I was reading signs and speaking easily with shopkeepers. (Lest I forget: There were a few incidents where I asked Anita to ask a question in English due to my fear of stumbling through a conversation in French.)
Now, when I want to express myself in French, I can find most of the words I need without effort. (more…)
Was your New Year’s Resolution to become familiar with European history? If so, you’re going to love our recommendation for an entertaining way to survey European history from the French Revolution to the present day. If you have a long commute, you’ll especially like the medium: hour-long audio tracks, produced by a history professor. But it is certainly not a dry lecture series.
At Bethel University, history professor Chris Gehrz produced a podcast called Radio Modern Europe for his course, HIS354 Modern Europe. The format is clever, using multiple means of presenting the material: short lectures, of course, but also breaking news bits, simulated interviews with historical figures, and even recipes. (more…)
We searched for a Christmas Market all last weekend, without any luck. On Tuesday, we took a short drive to Germany to see Trier, purportedly Germany’s oldest city. We were delighted to find their Christmas Market underway! (more…)
The town of Hobscheid is ready for the Christmas season! I took this photo yesterday and I am compelled to share it with everybody today.
Click on the photo to see its true glory, full-size at Flickr. I’ll have to return at night soon.
The big news from Luxembourg this week is the rash of black panther sightings.
First, from the initial reports by Ara City Radio:
The whole country has gone Panther crazy following a sighting of one of the big cats in Bascharage on Sunday. There have been further reports of the beast from all over the south-west of the country, with even some claiming to have encountered it in Merl and Belair in the capital. Amnéville zoo denied reports in the Luxembourg media that the panther was one of theirs. The zoo’s director said they only have 3 panthers and they’re all still in their cage.
This morning, Ara City Radio distributed the latest information regarding this feline menace: (more…)
From the title above, one might think that this will be an action-packed story about Anita or Will going to a Luxembourgish mall to purchase a coat (on a Sunday).
But it is so much more than that: We’re talking about an officially celebrated holiday in Luxembourg: Mantelsonndeg — roughly translated, “Coat Sunday”. (more…)
From the annals of local news, as brought to the attention of the Bugle staff by ARA City Radio, here is your probably-soon-to-be weekly Luxembourg update:
Police arrested a man in Fennange, near Bettembourg with a samurai sword in his car. He was on his way back to a bar where he’d had an argument with another of the customers. He’d told the other man he would be back with his samurai sword to sort out the matter. But the police were able to stop him before he could get into the bar, and confiscated the sword. He also lost his driving license on the spot after failing a breath test. Happy Bastille Day!
This holiday celebrates the customary event that marks beginning of the French Revolution in 1789, the storming of the Bastille prison (and temporary armory in July 1789). At that time, Luxembourg had been ruled for decades by the Austrian Hapsburgs, who had shown little interest in this part of their empire. (more…)
Last night, we attended the pre-event festivities for National Day. By my early analysis, it would seem that the pre-event activities are the best part of the holiday. We walked from our apartment down into the city center just before dusk — about 9pm, after we had dinner. The streets were packed with both with families and young adults, with everyone in high spirits. There were lots of tents with food, beer, wine and cocktails, and every restaurant was open with lots of outdoor seating.
The torch-light parade began at 10 and it was enthralling. The torches were like swords that burned from the top down. They were held by almost all the parade participants, including very young children. (more…)
Powered by WordPress
