Luxembourg Museums: Mudam and Dräi Eechelen

Dräi Eechelen in front, Mudam in back

May 18th was International Museum Day, and most of the museums in Luxembourg offered free admission for the weekend.  We took the opportunity to visit two museums we often glimpse from afar. They are perched at the edge of the Kirchberg plateau, overlooking the valley that wraps around the high city center.  Kirchberg is the most modern section of Luxembourg city, and the area at the bottom of the valley is a very historic section. These two museums sit atop the valley at the threshold between. Together, they represent the Luxembourg cityscape in a nutshell: the stark juxtaposition of the old and the new.

Speaking of nutshells, Dräi Eechelen means "Three Acorns" in Luxembourgish - and you can see where the name comes from in the photo above.

I had heard the contemporary Mudam exhibits were a bit "inaccessible," even by modern art standards, so our expectations weren't high.  Upon entering we were greeted by some creepy oversized hanging puppets.  And, expectations = met.

I'm sparing you the close-ups

The architecture of the building was certainly impressive, and we wandered rather swiftly through the majority of the exhibits.  Eager to be out in the fresh air again, we headed for the Dräi Eechelen.  This museum is an old fortress, and the exhibits within are related to the history of the fortress and associated military artifacts.  Cannons, swords, guns, uniforms, maps, models - interesting exhibits but all the explanations are in French and German, so we just took a quick look-through.  Still, it was much more accessible for the kids than the Mudam.  I think there's an audio tour in English if we go back.

running through a fortess tunnel

walking along the top of the Dräi Eechelen

But again, the main reason for the outing was to enjoy the scenery and walk around in the sunshine.  We wound our way down the path leading out through the fortress walls and into the valley below.

And we found a playground at the bottom.  Always a nice bonus.

Red Bridge from city center to Kirchberg

Below is an aerial view of the two museums, as well as more fortress wall ruins and the path leading down into the valley.  The Dräi Eechelen is the somewhat...er...phallic-looking structure.

Just remember there are three acorns, not two. 

Dräi Eechelen website here.

Mudam website here.