For today’s Local Matters episode, I went in the middle of the woods, in Fond de Gras between Petange and Differdange, to explore the Minettpark. The Minettpark is an open-air museum that exhibits relicts of the south’s mining industry. Especially in summer, a visit to the Minettpark is tempting, as temperatures are always a little lower here in the woods.

The director Frédéric Humbel says: “We are in the middle of nature. It’s really nice here. And it might be difficult to imagine that this place used to be an important site for iron ore mining.” For nearly a hundred years, workers here in Fond de Gras entered the mines to extract iron ore. In the open-air museum, visitors can discover some of the original buildings, among them Luxembourg’s oldest tavern, Bei de Giedel, and its lovely terrasse. The workers used to come here for afterwork drinks.

Further down in the park, in a large hall, an exhibition explains all the details of mining, with a special focus on the trains. The mines were open until the 1960s. The iron industry with its mines and later the steelworks set the basis for Luxembourg’s wealth. Already 1970, students tried to make this place live again and to get a train on the rails in Fond de Gras again. The same people are still taking care of the maintenance and operating of the old train, keep it shinning and running. Their club still exists – its members though aren’t students anymore. For the past 50 years, they have managed the trains on a voluntary basis. And thanks to their effort, I finish this visit climbing on the historical train that brings me on special rails through the woods to Petange.