Luxembourg

For a small country, Luxembourg packs in a lot of different scenery. In the north is the Éislek, part of the Ardennes uplands: rolling hills, deep winding river valleys, thick forests and small villages, often with a castle on a rocky spur. The country's highest point, the Kneiff, is up here, at roughly 560 metres. The centre and south, called the Gutland ('good land'), is gentler and more open, with farmland, meadows and woods. In the east, the Müllerthal region is famous for strange sandstone rocks, narrow gorges, mossy forests and little waterfalls, which is why people nickname it 'Little Switzerland'. Along the eastern border the Moselle river flows past steep slopes covered with vineyards. In the far south lies the Minett, the old iron-ore and steel region, where former mines and quarries are slowly turning green again.

Farming in Luxembourg is mostly about grass. A large part of the farmland is grassland and meadow, used to feed dairy cows and beef cattle, so milk, butter, cheese and beef are important farm products. Farmers also grow cereals such as wheat and barley, and fodder crops such as maize for feeding animals. Many farms are family farms. Along the Moselle, the big farming story is grapes and wine. Orchards around the country grow apples, pears and plums, and old-style orchards with tall fruit trees scattered in meadows are treasured for wildlife too.

On the table, Luxembourg food is hearty and home-style. Judd mat Gaardebounen (smoked pork collar with broad beans) is often called the national dish. Gromperekichelcher are crispy potato fritters sold at fairs and markets. Bouneschlupp is a green bean soup, Kachkéis is a soft cooked cheese spread on bread, and Quetschentaart is a plum tart baked in late summer when the plums are ripe. Riesling, a white wine grape, also gives its name to a dish: Rieslingspaschtéit, a pastry pie.

Because the country is small, many people like to buy food grown nearby: farm shops, weekly markets and village fruit-and-vegetable stalls are common, and local cheese, honey, apple juice and wine are easy to find. Farmers also look after the land for nature, keeping hedges, ponds and flower-rich field edges where bees and birds can live.

Forests cover roughly a third of Luxembourg's land, so trees are never far away. Broadleaf trees such as beech and oak are common, especially in the old woods of the Gutland and the Müllerthal, and there are conifer plantations too, particularly in the north. In spring, many forest floors are covered with wild garlic (called 'Bärlauch' in German), whose leaves smell strongly of garlic. In the damp, shady gorges of the Müllerthal, mosses and ferns grow thickly over the rocks, making the woods look like a fairy-tale setting. Meadows full of wildflowers, hedgerows and old orchards are home to insects, birds and small mammals, and many villages work to protect them.

Trees also matter in towns. Luxembourg City has large parks and green valleys running right through its middle, so you can walk from busy streets down into quiet woodland and riverside gardens in a few minutes. Hedges, roadside trees and village gardens full of vegetables, herbs and flowers are part of everyday life, and many families grow their own beans, potatoes and fruit. If you visit in autumn, the beech woods turn gold and copper, and in spring the orchards are white and pink with blossom.

Luxembourg has three nature parks, where people live and farm while protecting the landscape: the Upper Sûre Nature Park (Naturpark Öewersauer) around a big reservoir lake in the north-west, the Our Nature Park along the river Our in the north-east, and the Mëllerdall (Müllerthal) Nature Park in the east. The Upper Sûre lake is a reservoir that supplies a large part of the country's drinking water, so it is kept very clean, and people can swim, sail and paddle there. The Müllerthal region has also been recognised by UNESCO as a Global Geopark because of its remarkable rocks and landscapes. Walking is a national hobby: the Mullerthal Trail and long-distance paths through the Éislek are popular with hikers, and the whole country is crossed by marked footpaths and cycle routes.

Luxembourg is regularly placed among the happier countries in the world in the World Happiness Report, which asks people in many countries how satisfied they are with their lives. Things that the report links with happiness, like feeling safe, trusting others, having support from friends and family, and having time for nature, are all part of the picture. At Laisha we like to think that green valleys, forest walks and village orchards help too: a happy country always loves plants.