We love hosting our friends and showing them some of the wonderful sights in Europe. On this trip we were lucky to have our good friends Andres and Tessa join us for Thanksgiving. After a couple of days in Wiesbaden, we began our trek to Zermatt. Beginning in Baden Baden, we visited their Christmas market and stocked up on some goodies. From there we made it to the Mulhouse Christmas market and rested our wearied feet. The next morning we continued on to the most beautiful place to spend any holiday... Zermatt! After a couple of great days skiing, we continued on to the Strasbourg Christmas market (one of the biggest and best I've seen yet) before having a delicious dinner at our favorite restaurant in the world La Corde a Linge (for more on Strasbourg see my blog post from October). Thanks to our friends from TX for sharing a wonderful holiday with us in Europe!

     We explored Luxembourg on an organized USO trip. It makes a great day trip and there's a lot to see in the area.
     The highlight of this trip for both Luke and I was the tour we recieved at the WWII Cemetary. I highly recommend visiting here and asking a docent for the history, especially as it relates to the area. I'm not a WWII connoisseur by any means but it was facsinating! A definate must for anyone visiting Luxembourg! We also visited a German WWII Cemetary reminds us of the casualties that occured on both sides.
     The Fortress of Luxembourg is also a must see. Even though it was mostly demolished (upwards of 90%) in the mid 1800s due to years of Europe-wide altercations to obtain dominion over this stronghold, it is still something to see. We didn't get a chance to take any of the tunnel tours (they're seasonal) but I hope to return and do so.
     Luxembourg is not an inexpensive city, so bring lots of cash. We ordered a half dozen oysters on the half shell and forked over more than $20. They were delicious but a definate splurge. For a more economical meal, try Urban Bar in the pedestrian zone. The sandwiches are yummy and start around 11 euro - they also have some great local beers. So sit back, relax and enjoy your trip to Luxembourg!