Conclusion

Abstract

As my opening visit in the small Luxembourg town of Schengen came to an end, I began to drive back out of town—toward the bridge over the Moselle. As I drove along, I became aware that—despite the dearth of imposing monuments to European unity—plenty of visitors from neighboring Germany and France were nonetheless here in Luxembourg. Many of them were there not for anything to do with European identity but instead for a very mundane reason: their cars’ fuel tanks were empty. Filling stations line the roadways along the border between Luxembourg and Germany. It turns out that fuel is much less expensive in Luxembourg, creating a transborder economic pilgrimage. It appears that here, alongside the petrol and diesel pumps, rather than in front of the diminutive stone monument, many Europeans are taking advantage of the freedom to move across national borders.