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…)
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…)
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…)
We love living in Luxembourg, but we haven’t always made the most of the various opportunities to enjoy the local culture. As part of the 2011 Bakker Betterment Program, we committed to take advantage of the random local cultural events.
I’m proud to say in January we wandered out not once, but twice, to enjoy some small slices of our adopted homeland. Will is going to tell you about the first. (If he ever gets his post finished, that is. I knew buying the companion guidebook would only lead to analysis paralysis.) I’m going to tell you about our second adventure: The Aqua Tunnel.
Faithful Tumblr followers might remembering seeing a post that the city was opening the tunnel for just a few hours one Sunday. I’ll be honest – it wasn’t the tunnel that I thought we were going to get to see. I thought it would be the tunnel under the Petrusse River that once connected two sets of casemates. Instead, we saw a tunnel that is under the ENTIRE old city. For those who have been lucky enough to come to (or live in) Luxembourg, we can be more specific: we walked directly under the old city plateau. So it wasn’t “ancient rocky fortress” cool but “we’re really walking right under all that” cool. (more…)
Ninety years ago today, Jean was born to the reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, Charlotte and her spouse, Prince Félix de Bourbon de Parme. On that day, a tree was planted to commemorate his birth. It’s still growing, in one of my favorite little parks in Luxembourg City. Although the park is near the well-traveled tourist routes and the major shopping district, it feels secluded. (It’s also close to the Best Retirement Home in the World.) What’s more, the park also opens onto a breathtaking view of the Alzette Valley. The photo of the tree is not my own. 
I do have a photo of the tree, taken on the day that I discovered it with Anita’s mom, Cindy. But as you can imagine, keeping my collection organized is a constant struggle and it would take as long to find it as it took to write this post. The photo of the view over the Alzette is mine, photographed earlier this week.
Back to Jean’s story: He was the presumptive heir to the throne of Luxembourg when Germany invaded Luxembourg in May 1940. The Grand Ducal family escaped the day before the invasion, to Paris. As the war continued, they lived in the UK, Canada and the USA. (more…)
The staff would like to call your attention to exciting features of the Bugle Blog that you may have missed. We also propose some remarkable news items for your perlustration.
First, the Bakker Bugle Blog has a new service. Our email reminder service will ensure that you never miss a new post! Visit the About This Blog link — also in the tabs above — and you’ll see a section entitled “Subscribe via email”. Submit your email address, follow the link that you receive in a confirmation email, and voilà: you’re a member of the Bugle élite! (more…)
Luxembourg’s forests gave us a great show of colorful foliage this fall.
More words later. Pictures now!
(more…)
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…)
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…)
Yesterday, I did this.
Let me provide a translation.
This event is a randonnée, which is a waymarked ride rather than a race. This randonée had three different lengths for three levels of mountain-bikers.
(1) Fit,
(2) Super-Fit, aka Jens Voigt,
and (3) Chuck Norris.
It’s called a “Benefitsride” because a cyclist who is not in great shape should check his or her level of health benefits before attempting to ride the route. (more…)
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