Luxembourg

Luxembourg

• Luxembourg is the second richest country in the world – ranked by its GDP (gross domestic product) per capita of USD 92,049 (2014)
• Luxembourg has the highest minimum wage in the EU – paying workers a minimum of EUR 1,923 per month.
• Luxembourg is one of the safest countries in the world. According to a UN survey, you have less chance of being shot in Luxembourg than in any other country in the world. .
• Nearly half of Luxembourg’s workforce commutes to work in Luxembourg from another country. Most non-Luxembourg nationals travelling across the border are French (78,500 workers), Belgians (39,400 workers) and Germans (39,100 workers).
• Luxembourg is the only Grand Duchy in the world. After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, the Congress of Vienna made Luxembourg into a Grand Duchy, a state or territory ruled by a grand duke or duchess. The country’s full name is the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The present Grand Duke is Crown Prince Henri who assumed the throne in October 2000.
• Luxembourg is named after a Saxon fortress. Luxembourg was founded in 963AD as the County of Luxembourg by Sigefroid, Count of the Ardennes.
• Just under half of the permanent residents in Luxembourg are foreign – with around 170 different nationalities living in the country. Portuguese make up the biggest group at 16.4 percent. Additionally, just over 60 percent of the population of Luxembourg have an immigrant background according to the Duchy of Luxembourg’s Statistics Portal.
• Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in the world. It has an area of around 2,586 square kilometres (999 square miles), about the same size as the county of Dorset in the UK and slightly smaller than Rhode Island in the US.
• Luxembourg is the least populated of all the EU countries. It has a population of just over half a million people (563,000 in 2015), and is the 20th smallest of the world’s 194 independent countries.
• Luxembourgers are typically tri-lingual. The national language of Luxembourg is Lëtzebeurgesch or Luxembourgish (a Franconian dialect of High German). Children are taught in Luxembourgish in nursery schools; then also in French and German at primary school, plus English at secondary level. In the workplace, in the media and in everyday life, Luxembourgish, German, English, French and Portuguese are commonly spoken. 
• Luxembourg has the highest rate of car ownership in the world – with 647 cars per 1,000 population. Volkswagon was the top selling brand in 2014.
• Luxembourg is one of the world’s major financial and business centres, and a tax haven – it's home to the European Investment Bank and more than 150 others. 
• Luxembourg is a secular country but about 87 percent of the population are Roman Catholic. The remainder are Protestant (mainly Lutherans), Jews and Muslims.

apology for length it's all so interesting

Since I had no prior knowledge of the country I found these facts fascinating. We had a city walking tour by a local person with another fantastic lunch at a local restaurant. 

Every town we have visited were busy setting up for their Christmas market. It's a huge deal everywhere.

City side street 

Decorative Doorway

Quiche Lorraine

The most interesting part of the day was a drive to Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial. The American Battle Monuments Commission is an agency that operates and maintains 25 American cemeteries and 29 memorials, monuments, and markers in 16 countries, The commission established this site December 29, 1944. 

We arrived late in the day and the fog was quite dense so not the best day for photos.  General George Patton is buried here.

 The graves contain the remains of 5, 076 American military dead including one female army nurse, who lost their lives in the service of their country. It is interesting to note that all  graves are made of Italian marble. 

Front and back side of the Memorial Tablet which lists the names of 371 Missing in Action. The remains of these soldiers and airmen wee never recovered or rest in unknown graves. After touring the grounds a short memorial service was held to honor those vets in our tour group who had given their service to the military. It was a nice tribute and moving memorial service. 

My husband is one of the five men in the group-far right.   

Trier, Germany
the oldest city in Germany founded by the Romans.