Schueberfouer

Luxembourg is a country rich of culture and uniqueness. For those who have not realized it yet, the Grand Duchy has just the specific festivity for a certain culture or tradition and the fun is an all year round celebration.

Since it’s the start of September, let’s take a look at one of the festivals which more than 2,000,000 people gathered to every year: the Schueberfouer.

With more than 200 attractions, there is no wonder the event is considered as the biggest funfair in the Grand Duchy and the Greater Region. Since 1340, the Schueberfouer is being celebrated in late August and early September in a 4-hectare funfair on the Glacis, where nearly 3.5 km of funfair raids and other attractions are opened for both locals and foreigners. The most popular probably is the 25 gigantic high-adrenalin rides. There are also a lot of other attractions for young children, nearly as many restaurants and a host of brasseries, sweet stalls, lotteries, shooting ranges etcetera.

According to a review of Balmoral International Group Luxembourg, nobody really knows how the event has gotten its name but a lot of people speculate that it was named after Plateau du Saint-Esprit, the Schadebourg, where it used to be held or from the word Shober which means stack since the fair was held on St. Bartholomew’s Day at harvest time. The ‘Schueberfouer’ (or ‘Fouer’) was founded in 1340 by John I of Luxembourg (called John the Blind), Count of Luxembourg and King of Bohemia. That is why the fair’s stallkeepers erected a monument in his honor in the nearby municipal park.

In the past decades, the even was only held for 8 days. Nowadays, the fair normally lasts for three weeks, a long time celebration which allows people from far countries ample time to visit.

During these times, because of the long celebration, the security has the tightest job to keep the place in protection from fraudulent people which may ruin the festivity. Nevertheless, it does not hinder the people from celebrating with strangers and familiars alike.

The Fouer is held on the Glacis car park in Limpertsberg. It hosts a funfair boasting every kind of ride: switchback rides, ghost trains, ferris wheels, tip-up rides, and many more. Small stallholders can still be found lining the Allée Scheffer, where all sorts of items can be purchased, from nougat to grilled almonds, from Central African ebony sculptures to whisks, to magic tin-openers, to old CDs.

Like at any funfair, food and drink take center stage, and one specialty deserves a particular mention: ‘Fouerfësch’ is whiting cooked in brewer’s yeast, traditionally eaten with chips and washed down with a beer or a glass of dry Moselle wine.