Who Goes to Luxembourg?
We decided to fly into Luxembourg, basically because Erin thought it would be neat to have that stamp in the passports! The fun adventure started as soon as we got in the taxi cab at the airport! Rick and his team made sure we had directions to our first hotel in Trier, thank goodness! Our driver spoke Portuguese. We could have struggled through German, French, or Spanish, but Portuguese? The driver wandered around the outskirts of town. We finally got the taxi headed into the city center. We chuckled as we used hand signals to get the driver to stop, then haggled about the price and we ended up walking the last two blocks to the hotel. Our knight in shinning armor, Rick, would have been proud that we turned our travel mishap into a funny travel memory.
Trier in the Rain
We arrived a day early, to get over our jet lag. We were very pleased with our hotel, which was an interesting combination of retirement home and hotel! The room was a one bedroom apartment, with kitchen, living area, and bedroom. We couldn't wait to try out the beds as the jet lag took over! After a refreshing nap, we headed out to find some dinner and accidentally found the old town center. The weather was cooler here than we expected, luckily Rick had warned us to be prepared. We travel light, but have learned that rain jackets and umbrellas are non-negotiable. Of course, packing light also means sometimes that you will need to go shopping! Rebecca loves when she needs something as then she can get an extra souvenir like a scarf or sweatshirt.
Let the Tour Begin
To our surprise, the town was hosting a huge festival. So there were lots of people, lots of food, and lots to explore! Rebecca was delighted to find the crepe stand! After a great night of sleep, we were ready to explore the town again, before meeting our group. We had run into several from the group (at the airport, at breakfast, and in the lobby) but we were all a little anxious: Would there be other kids? (YES! There were several families with teenagers). Would there be other grandmothers? (YES! There were other travelers with years of "experience.") What would our guide be like? ( WONDERFUL!) We were thrilled to find that the Knight in Shinning Armor had sent a Fairy Godmother to lead us through the land of fairy tales, and her name was Tara. We immediately knew we were going to enjoy our group and our magic wand waving leader! After introductions of the group and pairing up of "buddies," we were off to see the town and have dinner together. Our first group dinner was filled with good food, good wine, and lots of good fun getting to know our fellow travelers.