Vianden

Being responsible lads we chose to call it an early night so we could wake up at a reasonable hour to have optimal time in our next voyage. We honestly had no idea of where to go, but we are scholars, so we did research. We didn't have our encyclopedias with us so we used this new tool Google. I don't know if you have ever heard of it. Through diligent work we devised our research question. we Googled things to do in Luxembourg. Ryan ran across a post of a small town called Vianden, which was near the German border, so we did it.
To start our morning off, we went to an American cemetery. Of course you have to jump on the opportunity to visit one of these if you are anywhere near one. I visited the American cemetery in Normandy in late December when my parents came, and it was absolutely incredible. The weather was not the greatest this day in Luxembourg, but the cemetery was still kept up in pristine condition. It was not the spectacle that Normandy was, but it still amazing to realize that you are in an area where such an atrocious war occurred. To think, it was not that long ago. 70 years or so, in reality, is not that long ago and it is great to see how these areas have rebounded. This particular cemetery was under a bit of construction. I realize this is probably not the main tourist time in being the beginning of March. Walking through these cemeteries can be a bit overwhelming. Obviously you have no real connection to these fallen heroes, but it really puts things in to perspective and makes you proud to be an American. Lee Greenwood lyrics were definitely going through my head. I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free. I won't forget the men who died, and gave there lives for me. I proudly stand up...you know the words. I think that main attraction to this cemetery was that it was the final resting place of General George Patton. We almost missed it, but they had a bit of a chain linked fence surrounding the white cross bearing his name. You do keep your eye out for Iowa graves and we saw a few. Well, we walked around a bit, mainly in silence, but decided we had seen what we needed to and decided to head out to Vianden.
For those wanting to know, we named our little Renault Twingo Gary. Just in case you were wondering. Once out of Luxembourg city, there was a lot of wooded area. It was very cool and to be honest, it was fun to drive. The roads were winding in every direction. We had wondered why we had lost time coming on the GPS and Ryan figured it was probably because the GPS thinks we will be driving 110 km through these areas and we obviously can't. Challenge accepted! I said that, but I really didn't try to drive that fast. We went through many small towns and they were definitely different than anything I have ever seen. The houses were all very nice and I wonder what the main jobs were in Luxembourg. Our GPS lady took us on quite the scenic route. We entered this little cow town and we were basically driving through fields. Definitely did not know if it was right since this crazy lady got us lost many times on the way to Luxembourg, but she got us there.
Just pulling into this town we could see why it had such high reviews. Although it was for sure a tourist spot, it almost seemed unscathed from modern development. Like most old towns, there was a river in the middle and you could look up and see a castle on top of this mountain. First thing first, we needed to eat. A lot of places were closed, because some of these restaurants seem to be closed more than they are open. It makes me miss great wall and fast food Chinese that is open till 4 am. We went to a pizzeria as it was the only thing open. The waitress approached us in German. We were very close to Germany and as I mentioned previously, they speak both French and German. Not knowing German we asked Parle vous anglais. She said no and responded with Parle vous Francais. Good enough, we were able to order in French and I ordered a calzone that was bigger than my head. The food was great, but we found out later that it gave us gas. Fully bellys and happy, we were ready to explore.
Vianden was the last place in Luxembourg to be freed from German occupation. We saw some photos and much of the city was bombed. This city is known for their castle and there is a lookout on top of the mountain which provides an amazing view of the castle and the town. There is a ski lift that leads you up to it, but it was closed for the winter. Once again, challenge accepted. We were getting to this damn lookout. We drove up the mountain and found a trail that we decided would for sure lead us to our destination. We were right, but this was a trail and not a road. It was very narrow and winding and if we went off the edge we were for sure plummeting to our death. We got up most of the way and there was a bit of a washout, but an area to perhaps turn around so we went for it. Ryan got out to help so I didn't drive off a mountain. I think once you reach a certain age you become more cautious and I was. When I was making this 16 point turn, I took off my seat belt and opened the door just in case I drove off so I would be able to jump out and spare my life. I am becoming so responsible. We got the car turned around and decided to walk the rest of the way. Risking our lives was worth it, because the lookout was fantastic. Looking down on this town and looking out at a castle was truly incredible. We were up there for awhile. Long enough that we pissed on the building because the bathrooms were closed. If you ever get the chance and can take the lift, do it. You will not be disappointed.
After soaking in the views we decided to check out the castle. It was fine, but looking down on it is much better than actually going into it. We saw some replicas of how it was supposed to look and we tried our best to understand what was being said in French. It was a very nice castle and has had a lot of work done to restore it since it had almost been left for dead and deteriorating. Our gas was a bit of a problem. We walked into these rooms with other tourists and Ryan was dropping some bombs, and I know that I was not the only one who was smelling it. One of the rooms was dedicated to famous people who have visited this castle. There were many political leaders and things of that nature, but I am proud to say that me hero had visited this castle. The man himself, Patrick Swayze. He was filming a movie there or something and signed a photo. This guy is a legend. This last summer my brother and I practiced jumping into each others arms like baby in dirty dancing. The man is a amazing.
The scenery in this town was unbelievable and I feel fortunate enough to have been able to see it. Luxembourg is a great place to stay as you can go anywhere on such a short drive. Literally, in a 24 hour span, I was in 4 countries and had only driven a couple of hours. On our way back we were driving through what seemed to be like national parks and took some time to walk around and enjoy the views. It smelt amazing. I know it sounds weird, but nothing smells better than nature. In Ryan's words we were able to see some babbling brooks and some awesome rock formations. It was incredibly cool to get out of the city and venture to places that we had no business in visiting. Amazing trip. We had some car troubles on the way home, but I will discuss that later. Go to Luxembourg if you have the chance and especially Vianden, you will not be disappointed. Well since I am a loser an staying in on Friday night to watch Glee, you can have your assumptions, but I have a football in my arms, a fat dip in my lip, and just got done watching East Bound and Down, so think what you will. If anyone besides my family reads this I have one thing to say. Travel. There is no better feeling than discovering new things. Au Revoir.