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…)
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…)
I had to travel to Morocco to get a straight answer. French adults don’t acknowledge my accent, bless their hearts. French children just say that I talk funny.
Morocco’s unofficial second language is French. (Arabic is the first language, and the Berber family of languages are second, officially.)
Anita says that it is like Florida for France, with all the French retirees in campervans for long vacations, and in the resorts for slightly shorter trips. That certainly appeared to be true in Agadir, a city rebuilt for the purpose of foreign tourism.
My first diagnosis was from a supervisor at one of the resort’s restaurants; she simply assumed I was German. (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…)
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…)
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…)
It’s the time of the year for lazy posts based on data from website analysis. Yay! Here are our ten most popular posts from 2010, according to Google. Enjoy the old content…
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…)
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