On a sunny Saturday afternoon, Mia, Dad and I set off by bike on the Jhangeli West Tour through the municipality of Beckerich.

Our destination is the Energy Museum in the old mill. We park our bikes and walk curiously towards the entrance.

“Look, Emil!” Mia calls excitedly. “It says here that you can visit the museum simply with a QR code. You scan it—and off you go!”

Curiously, Mia holds her phone up to the scanner. Dad taps in a few things—click!—and the door opens.

Inside, it smells of old machines. There are levers, buttons, gears and colourful signs with photos and maps everywhere. I’m amazed.

“Electricity used to be produced here using water,” Dad explains. “Beckerich was one of the first villages in Luxembourg to have electricity.”

I get to turn a crank with all my strength—and suddenly a small light bulb lights up.

“I made light, Mia!” I shout proudly.

Meanwhile, Mia is looking at a screen showing how difficult doing laundry used to be. The best part: you can touch and try everything here—and admission is even free!

After visiting the museum, we take a break and eat our picnic on a bench in the park next to the Kulturmillen. Afterwards, we stroll a little further through the garden.

“This garden was created in memory of Beckerich’s former mayor, Camille Gira,” Dad explains as we discover wooden sculptures standing quietly among the trees and plants.

Feeling refreshed, we get back on our bikes and continue to Noerdange.

There we visit a small, special museum in an old railway station. Inside, it almost feels as if time has stood still. Old suitcases, furniture, railway tracks and even a station master sitting at his desk tell stories of train journeys and how people used to travel.

When we get home in the evening and I’m lying in bed later, I switch on my nightlight. It makes me think about our trip. Today, many things happen at the push of a button: light, warmth, washing. But it is nice to know how many clever ideas and people made it all possible!