Spontaneous trips around Metz, France, Haff Réimech nature reserve (Les Lacs de Remerschen)

My Sundays are like your Mondays because I sometimes work on Sunday.
Today, I had two meetings pushed to next week; one of my clients were sick, and the other had to reschedule at the last minute.

When I learned that my morning and afternoon were now free, I rushed to HB (Honey Bunny) and said: “I’m Free! Let’s go somewhere with Luna (dog) around Metz, Germany or Luxembourg?”. HB replied: “My colleagues suggested a place that is beautiful, and a must see, around 40 min. from here between Germany and Luxembourg”.

I said, “COOL”, and we planned to go right after lunch.

Unplanned and Spontaneous is what made today great.

HB drove to the French-German border (Apach direct to Perl city) while I slept in the passenger seat (I have to fight with HB to let me drive).

Once we arrived HB woke me up.

We rode along la Moselle (a river that runs through la Lorraine in France), while enjoying the landscapes, the vineyards and mountains, from our car.

We ended up passing through the city Schengen (Luxembourg). Being the true American that I am, I’ve never heard of this city before, thanks to HB, he gave me a quick history lesson on Schengen. It’s a small wine-making village on la Moselle touching the borders of Germany and France. Last, it is known for the Schengen treaty. That explains why I saw tourists taking pictures around this tiny city.

So, do you know what the Schengen treaty is?

The Schengen (treaty) Agreement abolished many of the EU’s internal borders, enabling passport-free movement across most countries in Europe.

That means you can drive your car from Spain to Germany without going through a passport check. The Treaty takes its name from the town of Schengen in Luxembourg, signed in 1985 and took effect in 1995.

I love history and discovering different cities throughout my travels, but I won’t go into all the details on Schengen, you can find those here: Schengen my brain please.

As we drove through Schengen, we saw a passage that lets you walk along la Moselle; therefore, we looked for a parking lot and that is how we came upon Haff Réimech nature reserve (Les Lacs de Remerschen).

In Luxembourg, the Moselle (river) Haff Réimech nature reserve (Les Lacs de Remerschen) is at the bottom of the wine slopes between Schengen and Remich. It’s well known for its large diversity of birds, its flora and fauna.

You will find a lot of wildlife photographers hiding out in cabins and environmental groups there. There is also a Biodiversum visitor centre which is open to the public, though we didn’t go in because of Luna (dog).

If it was Luna’s birthday, this would be her surprise! Nature, Wildlife and Birds, her favorite and ours too!

Luna and I, we have two things in common:

• When she is in nature her hunting and tracking take over!
• When I’m in nature, my creativity ignites! And it takes me over.

On spontaneous trips, I always feel like I’m forgetting something. As we walked, I thought to myself, “Why didn’t I bring something to draw on? Ooh, that would be so cool in water color paints, humm fall colors, num num num…”

Thank good I had my camera in my woman-bag, but I didn’t want to take it out too soon. I wanted to watch my Pharaoh Hound (Luna dog) transform into crazy-smelling-everything-Luna.

This is a great example on how to test-out your creativity, even though you don’t know where you’re going with it.

As we progressed around the reserve, I started to drown out the sounds and thoughts in my head. I have been meditating for years, so meditation walks come easy to me.

I listened to the wind, our footsteps and Luna’s paws. Then I turned my focus on touch: HB holding my hand, Luna pulling me to walk faster and the fresh air on my skin.

I thought to myself, “Wow, there are so many sounds” and I felt like trying something new. So, I took out my cellphone and recorded the sounds all around us.

I had no idea where I was going with this, all the while thinking people pay for sounds of Nature like at Nature and Découverte (a French Store).

I love color in nature.

I even played a game with HB: Try to find something blue in nature, and I’ll try to find something orange.

Yes I know, blue is not in season at the moment, though I wanted a challenge.

I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse into my life in France.