Day 23: Saarlouis to Luxembourg

Leaving Saarlouis early on a Sunday morning was calm and peaceful in comparison to the sights and sounds of the previous evening’s nightlife – particularly when I was trying to sleep at 10 pm. It was looking like it was going to be a beautiful day and I set out with an exhale of relief.

I made my way to the Saar again and spent the first little while meandering along the riverside trail. Lots of cyclists and picnic goers were out enjoying the Sunday heat.

I knew that today’s ride promised a few hills and I tried to mentally prepare myself. However, all the mental fitness in the world never compares to the real thing. At one point, I was going up what I truly believe to be the steepest hill I ever have climbed via bike. The GPS said that it was 14.8%. Luckily no traffic on this one – mostly – because I was weaving back and forth simply to prevent myself from stopping and falling over.

But at the top of these climbs I was rewarded with great views, the coolest of which was the vast rolling fields and farmland with wind turbines. When I was riding right next to one I could hear and feel the force of the turning blades and no longer wondered how they can interrupt bird migratory patterns. It was like riding next to a jet engine.

I had another big climb and descent coming into Schengen – the first stop in Luxembourg. By the river Moselle there was a food festival taking place. Naturally, I had to stop and take a look around. I didn’t end up buying anything because it was early for lunch and I have also grown concerningly accustomed to my stolen hotel meat and cheese sammies.

For a while I dallied along the bike path beside the Moselle enjoying the sun and the breeze. Shortly after, I cursed the breeze which had turned into full force wind in the opposing direction. To make things worse, I had turned off the riverside road and was back in the hills.

I saw some cows and, of course, waved at them. I enjoy it when their ears twitch at that moment as if they are waving back, but really they are trying to get flies off their face. I saw people standing on their doorstep clearly waving to their friends but I waved at them too, thinking – for some reason – they were also waving at me. I don’t know how they felt about that.

I was running pretty low on water and kept finding reasons not to stop and get some. Mostly, there were just no places to stop. When I was about 7 km away from Luxembourg city I stopped at a gas station and refilled. Unfortunately, this did not deter a later dehydration headache.

I am staying in the centre of the city and walked to see a philharmonic band performance in the Place d’Armes that is part of the Summer concert series. Later in the evening I went out for dinner and waited the longest I ever have between ordering and receiving my food. Luckily, I wasn’t too hungry otherwise they would have had problems.

Luxembourg is glamorous, interesting geographically, and busy with tourists. To access the old city you have to descend a good 100 metres to cross a river and then ascend again. Because of this they have some very grand and expansive bridges.

I wasn’t rushed to do too much in the evening because I had the next day free in Luxembourg as well!

DOTD

Dog of the day spotted and touched in the Schengen food fest!