Luxembourg is a tiny country that is home to half a million people, over 200 investment banks and a number of EU agencies. "Men, horses & forests", that's what a sign at the entrance of Luxembourg told visitors to expect.

After 400 years of domination by various European nations, the Treaty of London established Luxembourg as an independent and neutral state in 1839, with its territory reduced in size but its sovereignty guaranteed by the major European powers. This marked the beginning of modern Luxembourg as a sovereign nation. It is also one of the six original members of the European Union (EU), formed in 1951. Luxembourg is also a country that is very indecisive when it comes to sticking to a language. The official language of the civil service, law, and parliament is French, although parliamentary debate and court cases are conducted mainly in Luxembourgish and police case files are recorded in German. German is also the primary language of the press. Hence expect the locals to be fluent in three languages as a minimum.

 

Luxembourg City

With its historic architecture, cobbled streets and cliffs blending with the cityscape, the walkable capital city is a nice place to spend a day but not more. What it lacks is liveliness. In fact for fun, local residents back in the day used to turn to heavy alcohol drinking sessions. Raspberry flavoured wine was particularly popular until drink driving laws stopped the practice. Now locals usually travel to France or Belgium for their entertainment.