Old World Sophistication

I’m writing this from one of the unique places in all of Europe—snowy Luxembourg. It’s a place that intrigued me when I first traveled through here during college in 2000, but then I only had a few hours to explore the city. This time I have about the same, so I can’t claim to be an expert.

But Luxembourg fascinates me. It’s a mix of Old World Charm, pretentious sophistication, and so much more. Nowhere outside of Texas will you see as many SUVs—the airport parking lot is littered with Porsche Cayenne’s (and not the base model). Nor will you find such an emphasis on banking anywhere else in the world. From the moment you get off the airplane, the only ads in sight are private client banking and investment banking adverts.

It’s also a place that I would pose has an identity crisis. Everyone speaks French, German, and the national language, which sounds remarkably like Old German. However, tell them that it sounds like German (or any derivative), and they get a little frazzled—seemingly desiring to separate themselves from their easterly and southern neighbors. The people, however, are universally friendly, but distinctive in dress and the way they carry themselves. Reminds me a little of a more innocent Switzerland.

It’s also a hell of a hard place to get to. Trains to major European cities are 3 hours+ and often require a change along the way. Intriguingly for a banking center, flights aren’t much better. From London—Europe’s air hub—there are only a couple flights per day on BA. And my flight had all of 9 people on a 737, and 3 of those were flight attendants.

All in all, I need to spend some more time here. There’s still a charm I can’t quite put my finger on…