Ice cream in Luxembourg City

What do you suppose makes Herb say "Dearest Mother of Mine" now? Cute.

This is what I could find of the city of Luxembourg with what I hope is the bridge Herb mentions:

Photo taken from here

26 January 1919

Dearest Mother of Mine,

I wish I could tell you that I’m coming home very soon but I can’t do that until I know something definite. I’ve heard on pretty good authority that the first of the Ambulance Sections are to start back next month and regularly every month thereafter. However the first step in that direction is to be relieved from duty with a Division and that has not yet come about.

I had expected that we’d be moving back into France about this time but the move has been postponed until after the first. I’m not sure yet just where we are going but it will doubtless be some place in Alsace. I shall certainly be glad to get back into France. Yesterday completed two months for us in Luxembourg and I never want another two months like it.

On Friday I went in to the city of Luxembourg on business and spent a few hours in the city. It’s really a rather nice place. There are two parts to the town – the old and the new separated by a wide deep ravine with a little river at the bottom. The sides of the ravine are laid out into streets and parks with winding roads and all terraced. The two banks are spanned by a great stone bridge, from which one has a very pretty view of this quaint little valley. The town is very clean looking with pretty good streets and the public buildings are quite fine. Although it is the capital of the country the town isn’t much more than 30,000 or 40,000 I don’t believe. It is, of course, full of military police, but fortunately I had a pass. I saw a sign in a window “Ice Cream” so I went in and had some in spite of the fact that it was a cold day. That was the first I had seen since I was on permission.

The weather has been rather colder lately and today it is snowing. There hasn’t been quite so much rain and that is a comfort.

I’ve been trying to remember what I can of the girl to whom Tom is engaged. It isn’t much. Her name is, I think, Coleman and I think she is Catholic though I’m not at all sure of it. She comes from a very nice family quite well known in the town, I believe. As for herself she’s fair skinned + dark haired + very pretty – very nice manners. I really don’t know her at all though I’ve met her several times.

Before I come back I want to get some little presents for Marnie and Olive to bring with me, especially as I couldn’t get them anything for Christmas. I wish you’d suggest some things that you think they might like. Can’t you?

Your affectionate son,
Herb