Q- (Old) Quarters in Luxembourg

Here we are in Luxembourg's Old Quarters and Fortifications, another UNESCO World Heritage site.

The city was founded in 963 and grew in size until the fifteenth century when it was taken over by the House of Burgundy.  From the 16th century until the demolition of the walls in 1867, Luxembourg was held by the Holy Roman Empire, the House of Burgundy, the Hapsburgs, the French, Spanish and Prussians.

Our first view of the area was from the parking lot looking down into the old fortifications.

The city buildings were quite stunning.  First is the current palace for the Grand Duke, built by the Spaniards in the 16th century.

Notre Dame Cathedral was originally a Jesuit Church, dating to 1613, later becoming a Roman Catholic Church and then a cathedral in 1870.  We had to do a walk-about to get views of it.

 The organ loft above

The altar.  Hard to get good pictures of stained glass with all the light.

 The City Hall - completed in 1838

 The city history museum

 In the Place d'Armes

Monument to William II, King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg, 1840-1849

I had to rewrite this post after accidentally deleting it, so I forgot to post it with a picture of flowers when I re-wrote it.

Here is Daylily Queen Regent:

Have you ever done something really stupid, like hitting 'delete' by mistake and not being able to recover your work?

L - Luxembourg

Luxembourg.  I admit it is not a country I ever had on my bucket list.  It is one of the capitals of the European Union and the seat of the European Court of Justice.  Visiting Luxembourg facilitated my visit to a City in Germany which I will discuss later this month.  And a visit to another UNESCO site here, coming soon to a challenge near you.

High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community

Monument of Remembrance -World War I - Gelle Fra

While in Luxembourg I visited the American Cemetery.

Prior to this trip, I had no idea this cemetery existed.  It is quite a moving experience.

I found this house to be quite lovely.  Turns out it is the Chinese Embassy.

When the country Luxembourg is mentioned, what comes to your mind?

Bonus:  Daylily 'Lavender Stardust'

An A to Z Challenge Reveal - 2017 Edition

My Benelux Adventure

Last year I traveled to Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg.  The political-economic union of the three countries is referred to as Benelux.  I also made a quick day trip into Germany to see Germany's oldest city.  This is the theme for my blog during the month of April and the A to Z Challenge.

This trip was in the planning for many years.  I originally wanted to travel to Amsterdam in 2004, but the Rijksmuseum was being renovated, a renovation that started in 2003 and continued to 2013.  In the meantime, I saw the movie 'In Bruges' in 2009 and my desire to see the region was even more intense. But wait, they were still renovating the museum.  So, other places were visited and I have blogged about those trips - Canada, Austria, Germany, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Russia, Finland, Estonia... did I forget anyplace?

Anyway, the museum was reopened and the time was right.  Off I went.  It was a wonderful two-week adventure.  And I could have used more time, but admit that I was ready to come home.  I will share all the wonderful sites with you - well, all the A to Z sites.

If you have a Twitter account, you can follow me @msdeniseh553.  These posts appear on Twitter as soon as they are posted here.  You can also sign up for emails in the box on the right.  I will try to link on the A to Z Challenge website each day, but since my posts are pre-scheduled, that may not always happen.  Whatever you decide, I hope you will travel with me in April.

Have you visited any of these countries.  What was the highlight of your trip?

Check out the other bloggers here.

Remembering Their Sacrifice

Bastogne, Belgium

Luxembourg