Hotel Bierg An Dall Vianden

... sun was setting, and I was pretty tired, so I drove to Bastogne, and checked in to a hotel I like to use there, the Melba. It’s not expensive, right in the center of town, and has free wifi. Bastogne, of course, is where American troops, surrounded by the last-gasp German Arden Offensive (the Battle of the Bulge) around Christmas 1944, refused to surrender. When a German officer was sent in blindfolded to ask the Americans to surrender, General Anthony McAuliffe replied &#8220 ...

... oil and garlic. It was actually very good, and I'm not a big broccoli fan. We spent the rest of the evening chatting in the kitchen because it was the warmest room in the house. There is a wood burning stove in the kitchen and that is what is used mainly to heat the house. It got very cold here. Karyn said that it was -3 C the prior evening! <br><br>We chatted around the stove and listened to a variety of music ...

Of course I needed to visit Luxembourg, hiding away there between France, Germany and Belgium. It is the fifith smallest country in the world. It is very hilly and surrounded by trees. The hostel is down at the bottom of a cliff, yay! The city of course is quite small, but it is surrounded by ruins and forest which makes it quite a unique city in amongst the hustle and crowds of all the other major cities. The people there speak French and their own language, Luxembourgish I suppose.

... been completed. Vianden is also remembered as the last place in Luxembourg to be freed from the Germans in World War II in February 1945 when the Americans completed Luxembourg's liberation. <br>he hotel was absolutley wondeful offering a great supper of Fondu and local smoked hams with the GREATEST local wine. We went to bed happy dreaming of Rupuzel (at least I was) I don't know who Bruce was dreaming about.<br><br>The next morning we awoke and headed in to Diekirch about 20 ...

... open and accessible. We checked in to our hostel on Friday and it is a VERY nice hostel. It is right on the river front, meaning it's down in the gorge and it's a LONG hike up to get anywhere. BUT, this makes for a picturesque surrounding: We met a guy in our dorm room almost immediately. His name is Ken and he's from Vancouver. The first thought that struck me is that he has blond hair, a beard, and glasses and is Canadian. Hmm. After we spent the whole afternoon doing laundry (very ...

... to drink it or eat with a spoon and we were afraid of doing it wrong! We tried to see what other people were doing but no one had it at the same time. I ate half with my spoon and we gave up and left the rest! We later saw people spooning it so we at least did right by not drinking it... Owain choose the wine, a red but it came chilled which we hadn't expected. Quite light though and was very nice. I had to explain that I was with my car ...

... at a former monastery, Hotel Heintz. We have a nice room with balcony overlooking the city walls. English is spoken here by most but not at the grocery store. Since we have been here we have managed to locate an ATM, a grocery for wine, cheese and crackers, and water. We are off to locate some fine food for dinner. Thursday, 4-10-08 - This morning we trudged uphill to the castle and toured the castle, unguided - the castle ...

... so you can basically go wherever you want to on your bike. It was a bit of a hazy day but the weather was great nonetheless, the only serious problem I had was that the bike I was riding was a bit old and the seat was basically just the metal and some random rubber over it, so my bum was not liking the whole ordeal one bit. From Diekirch to Vianden the land changes from small rolling hills to really high ...

... small country, all the cartoons on TV and in the newspaper seemed to not have words, just gestures and sound. The weather was kind of grey, the food was good. We discovered Croque Monsieurs (like grilled cheese sandwiches with ham -delish!)

... Casemates - tunnels and chambers dug to further fortify Luxembourg city. Saw Notre Dame church and walked along the park at the bottom of the valley where we found an old church built into the side of the hill. Luxembourg is a beautiful medieval valley.