June found us missing our friends but pushing ahead with the normal fun things that we like to do in Luxembourg.
First up was the Tour of Luxembourg, which is the annual five day cycling event held around Luxembourg. I took two days off so we could make enjoy as much of the racing as possible. On Friday, we decided to ride our bicycles to the race, which was something we haven’t done in the past. Not only that, but we attempted to ride up the big climb of the day, thinking that the road would be closed to cars in advance of the race. No such luck… we had to fight the cars all the way up the hill. (more…)
I have found this a difficult post to write. May was a busy and emotional month for me. I believe I have put off writing about it because I haven’t fully processed the changes. I know I’ll want to remember May 2015 in the future, so I will do my best to document it all here.
The events of May/June actually started a few days before, in late April. Will departed for a three week trip to the US, with a side-trip to the Dominican Republic for meetings. While normally I might be a bit lonely while he is away, this was no normal May. (more…)
These are exciting times for civil rights in the European Union, especially in Ireland and Luxembourg.
Two weeks ago, the Republic of Ireland voted for marriage equality. Much of Europe considers Ireland to be slow to adopt progressive legal structures, particularly regarding women and LGBT persons. The overwhelming vote for the 34th amendment to the Irish constitution put paid to that reputation. The Irish moved from political silence to civil partnerships to equal marriage in just a decade.
Here in Luxembourg, same-sex marriages became legal on the first of this year, by parliamentary legislation. This week, Luxembourgers are considering whether to extend another civil right: voting.
No, no, don’t misunderstand: LGBT people aren’t denied the right to vote in Luxembourg! The question before the polity is whether to extend voting rights beyond citizens to include long-term and demonstrably committed residents. This Sunday, June 7, Luxembourg’s citizens vote on that constitutional question. (more…)
Writing up the July-August blog post, I cannot comprehend where the last nine weeks went. The heat of summer has left Luxembourg and we are heading quickly into fall. Before I turn around it will be November, I just know it.
July started off quietly. During the first weekend, I talked Will into a nice Sunday ride with our friend Vikki. We did an out and back towards Junglinster, where we tackled the infamous Bourglinster cobbled climb. This was the second time we have forced Vikki up this hill and everyone enjoyed it more the second time. (more…)
In late May, we poured over maps of the stages of the Tour de France. This year, we said, we would travel to see the cyclists climb the real mountains that we’ve seen so many times on TV.
The Alps didn’t fit our schedules and the Pyrenees — well, they are very far away. But there are also real mountains in one of our favorite regions, Alsace-Lorraine (and parts of Franche-Comté), and those stages fell on a convenient weekend. So we found a budget hotel and booked one night, planning to watch two stages.
We were excited about the finish of Stage 7 on the top of La Planche des Belles Filles, which has an incline of 22% for the last 500 meters! Anita’s only concern was whether she could keep from yelling at all the fans that always crowd around the leaders on the top of the big climbs.
It was lovely weather when we arrived in Lorraine.
A typical Valley in the Vosges. Anita drove and I navigated using GPS and paper maps. I’d marked a few ways to get to the bottom of La Planche des Belles Filles.
We were stunned to discover that every road was blocked at least 10 miles from the foot of the finish line. I was not happy.
We had one alternative left, and it would only get us to the last little climb before La Planche. On my map, the road was labeled “RF” and squiggly. After seeing the thin line on our car’s GPS, Anita agreed to drive down the logging road (or “Route Forestière”).
This is as close as we would get to the finish. There were even police to keep us from walking to the final climb. I was a little frustrated.
We fell short of our ambitions, but it was hard to be disappointed by the view at La Chevestraye.
The Luxembourgish presence was no surprise. On this corner, they had come prepared!
It was a lively spot, and people had clearly been camping there since morning. The festival atmosphere was exactly what we associated with the Tour.
This message, “Everyone with Thibaut,” was all along the route. Thibaut Pinot was born nearby, and he was the youngest rider of the Tour.
These young men from Belgium entertained everyone with antics and a megaphone. They were very funny and kept the show going for hours and hours.
After a long time, the Caravan arrived! It was the end of the course, and they looked eager to finish. This woman was a notable exception.
These guys were local promoters who were throwing out little cows on keychains. Adorable!
The CFTC is a major French union. Its message looked less aggressively political than last year’s.
A hand-off from the horse-racing (and gambling) industry.
For the first time in our experience, Luxembourg was represented! They tossed out bike maps of the country.
This may be an effective way to sell laundry detergent. A bit sexist, but eh … this is France.
One should not conclude anything about the popularity of a product from its prominence in the Caravan.
Anita chatted with two Americans who were in France on vacation and decided to see a stage or two of the Tour.
Michael Albasini, of Orica-GreenEDGE led with Christophe Riblon of AG2R — just barely staying ahead of the peloton. They were caught at the bottom of the final climb.
Anita rang her cowbell to encourage a Lotto rider who fell off the back of the peloton.
I believe this is the Illinoisan, Christian Vande Velde. He wouldn’t finish strong today, but he had a decent Tour overall.
Here’s Mark Cavendish in the Rainbow jersey of the world champion. He was just looking to get to the top of the last mountain, at this point.
American Tyler Farrar, formerly of Leopard Trek, had a bad day. He was just ahead of the Broom Wagon when we saw him.
After the race passed, the police blocked the way to the finish. But several groups of cyclists did the course in reverse, including these men in their spiffy uniforms.
We stayed overnight just outside of Mulhouse, not more than an hour away. We were exhausted and spent what little energy we had strategizing for Stage 8.
This is a prompt post on something that happened TODAY!
One of the many parts of my job at A Big Corporation is to get government approvals, which we call apostilles. Today I needed to drop off some documents, so around eleven o’clock I wandered out of my office. I took my routine path to one of many government buildings.
I was a bit surprised at the police presence outside my office, but I didn’t think too much about it. Further on, I found barricades and even more police. That finally triggered my memory: The Queen’s coming today!(more…)
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…)
It’s National Day in Luxembourg! (We posted three times about National Day 2009 — one, two, three — and once in 2010.)
Perhaps this is a good time to note that, for the first time since the 18th Century, the rules of succession for the throne of Luxembourg have changed. (more…)
This time last year, just after the 2010 Tour of Luxembourg, Luxembourgish pro cyclists Frank and Andy Schleck were offered leading roles on a new Luxembourgish pro team. Six months later, in January 2011, the world learned that Team Leopard-Trek would have its eye on the Tour de France, from July 2nd to July 24th. With proven talents like Fabian Cancellara, Jens Voigt, and Stuart O’Grady riding with the Schleck brothers, the new team caused a stir in pro cycling. (more…)
In this, the final episode of my Amsterdam adventure, I make a lot of Amsterdammer friends in the midst of a city delirious with the home team’s success.
After the crowd at our new favorite pub dispersed, we made our way to Dam Square. We had about an hour to kill before Katherine and Anita arrived. Of course, we set out in search of Ajax shirts for Will and me. We walked to a Foot Locker and asked if they had Ajax shirts. The store employee at the front, basically a bouncer, shook his head and pointed to Aktie Sport down the street. He clearly did not want drunk Ajax fans in his store.
In Aktie Sports, I saw the blue “change” jersey, but not the red and white shirts that the team had worn during the game and that eighty percent of the fans were wearing that day. We asked the helpful staff whether they had the home shirts. The young men said that Adidas had not yet released the home shirts for the following season, and that the prior season’s shirts were no longer on sale. (more…)
In late May, we poured over maps of the stages of the Tour de France. This year, we said, we would travel to see the cyclists climb the real mountains that we’ve seen so many times on TV.
This is a prompt post on something that happened TODAY!
It’s National Day in Luxembourg! (We posted three times about National Day 2009 — 
