Limpertsberg

So we've done Belair.  The natural next step would be Limpertsberg.  It's one of the largest neighborhoods in the city and it's all the better for it.  Unlike in Belair, you'll find homeowners living here  (keep in mind that more than 80% of people who live in Belair rent their lodgings), people who've been around for decades, since before most people could place Luxembourg on the map.  Why is this important? It's not about snobbery, but about stability.  Put your kids to state school in Belair and soon you'll have them crying all the way home because their best friend is moving somewhere else.  It's like leaving your attic window and garage door open at the same time.  Stuff is likely to come flying through.  A lot of people aspire to living in Belair and find it quite easy to do so when they first move to Luxembourg.  Rents aren't really that much higher than other places in the city and there is plenty of housing to rent.  Yet after a few years, the expat assignment comes to an end and people go back home - or people decide to stay and to buy, which more often than not, unless you want to live in a small apartment, means moving somewhere more affordable.  I can't really say that Limpertsberg is that place, because it's still pretty darn expensive, but it is more stable.  You've got plenty of Portuguese people living here, and unlike what the Luxembourgers want you to think, this is a good thing.  It means you'll have friendly neighbours who won't complain when you light the barbecue (and you'll smell their lovely fried squid from time to time too), they'll chat over the garden fence and smile to your children.  I speak from experience.  Once you have neighbours like that, they will be your main reason for staying put.  Ok, so Limpertsberg.  There are couple of main roads running through the 'quartier' which you'd probably want to avoid if you're sensitive to traffic and people honking their horns.  The worst, by far, is Avenue de la Faiencerie, you'd want to avoid this address at any cost.  People zoom through here morning and evening to get from/to Rollingergrund, Muhlenbach, Bridel, Strassen, Belgium etc. Then there's Avenue Pasteur which gets busy too and Albert Unden which connects Muhlenbach with Limpertsberg. Avenue Victor Hugo gets its fair share of cars too, but it's nothing like Faiencere.  Another one is Rue de Glacis, the one that winds itself down from the Glacis square (parking space) to Côte d'Eich.  It gets very busy during rush hour, but it's fairly quiet at other times.  There are some beautiful villas along this street and if I tell you how much they sold for 10 years ago, you would shout at me in disgust, so I won't.  If you're after an apartment, there are some really nice ones in the street of the American embassy and even more just opposite, in Ancienne Côte d'Eich.  In the latter there are a few different buildings, one of which probably dates from the early naughties and is in pretty good nick.  By the look of it, it has nice quiet views on a tiny little valley behind.  The only problem is that, although  the street is open only to residents, many people use it as a shortcut to avoid the winding Rue de Glacis, and thus speed through it, in order for the shortcut to make sense.  So keep your children and dogs on a tight leash.  Apart from that, anywhere east of Victor Hugo is likely to be a good bet, there are some nice, quiet streets, but you'll be paying LIBOR+.  In terms of restaurants, there isn't much going on, but don't forget that you're within walking distance of the centre.  There are a few pizzerias (mainly quite dodgy, including Porta Nova) , not great, but they'll do; an excellent Indian (Tibet 2); Brasserie Schumann which is pricey, but quite good and in with the young professional crowd, a Chinese place which is ok and a few Luxembourgish non-descript places.  In short, it's not where you go to have a good meal in Luxembourg.  There's the Cafe de Tramways, which is a bit of an institution.  And you have the university (although parts of it have moved to Esch and are parts are still to go) which makes for a bit of life in the Northern End.  The Tony Neumann Park is nice and quiet and there's a very nice residential area just next to it.  It wouldn't win any prices for architecture, but I can imagine that it would be a good, quiet area for families with kids.  There's also a small supermarket in Avenue Pasteur (Cactus) and a few banks.  Parking can be a nightmare in August when the annual amusement fair occupies the Glacis parking space for the best part of a month, and to a lesser extent when the circus comes just before Christmas.