Credit: Geoffrey Thompson

On Monday 18 April 2022, the traditional "Emaischen" Easter Monday market was held in both Nospelt, in the municipality of Kehlen in the west of the Grand Duchy, as well as in Luxembourg-ville, mainly on on Rue du Marché-aux-Herbes, Rue de la Boucherie, Rue du Rost and Rue Sigefroi.

The Easter markets were held without any COVID-19 restrictions this year, apart from the necessity to wear masks on public transport, i.e. on the navettes / shuttle buses laid on by the organisers.

Chronicle.lu went along to the market in Nospelt, noticing at once the numbers of people that had decided to attend this event, one of the first large outdoor events, not only of the year, but post-pandemic. The P&R system including the circular route shuttle bus ensured that access to the village was made easy, particularly as the nearby roadworks just a few days beforehand were paused and the one-way traffic diversions had been removed, otherwise there could well have been many people frustrated in trying to find an access road to Nospelt that was not blocked to traffic.

The sunny and warm weather also helped to bet people out; however, the queues for fries, grillwurst and hamburgers, as well as for waffles and drinks, were getting longer and longer as those preparing food, serving and taking orders were inundated with hungry and thirsty visitors, the volumes of which had not been witnessed, and catered for, in over two years. Despite this, the "indoors" catering in the large marquee was in full swing, with spaces available among the rows of tressel tables and benches, with the Nospelt village brass band entertaining the diners with an up-beat series of tunes.

The main reason for the outing to the Emaischen is to collect / purchase the traditional "Péckvillercher", small terracotta bird whistles, for which the 2022 official model was on sale. So too were other variations, and not only limited to birds, but an array of other animals too. And vendors also had other terracotta wares on display / for sale too.

The village museum was open, and was offering a special Roman display. For children, there were bouncy castles and the Easter Bunny made an appearance too, as did a potter who welcomed young, aspiring potters to watch him at work, close-up.