If you’re not active on Instagram, the name Sally Wagner probably doesn’t ring a bell. However, on social media she has built a strong presence in Luxembourg – and not without reason. It’s not only Luxembourgers who can identify with the young woman’s content, but also many English-speaking expats living in the country.
The tradition of Liichtmëssdag can be just as much of a topic in her videos as the countless business cards from used-car buyers that litter the streets of the capital every few metres. The absurdity of everyday life in Luxembourg – that is exactly her theme.
Sally Wagner’s sharp outside perspective on Luxembourgish culture is also linked to the many years she spent abroad. Originally from Lampertsbierg, she first studied in Trier after graduating from the Lycée de Garçons in Luxembourg City, before continuing on to the renowned British universities of Cambridge and St Andrews – where, in the early 2000s, Prince William and Kate first met.
“I actually wanted to meet a prince”, Sally Wagner jokes in the interview. But love eventually took her somewhere entirely different: to Hawaii, where her husband – an American soldier – was stationed.
As a young adult, she was determined to leave Luxembourg and experience the world. After living abroad, her view of her home country became more nuanced: “You realise that the problems that exist here also exist elsewhere, and sometimes they are much worse. I think Luxembourg has a certain charm that you might not immediately notice when you’re living in it.”
What she missed most while abroad was Luxembourgish pâtisserie: “You don’t realise what you have until it’s gone. And bread! Finding proper bread in the UK or America is impossible.”
Sally Wagner originally started Instagram to let her friends around the world take part in her life. That’s also why most of her videos are in English. At first, they were just meant for friends and family, but eventually, the broader public started to notice them. She has since returned to Luxembourg with her account continuing to grow, now reaching over 42,000 followers.
“There are so many very unique things about Luxembourg that you don’t even notice if you’re Luxembourgish and grew up here. But when you try to explain them to foreigners, you get a strange look, and realise, “Oh right, that’s not normal!” One example is Bretzelsonndeg. Explaining to her American husband, “I want a pretzel on a specific day. I’ll give you an egg in return”, was one of the more unusual cultural exchanges.
Especially over the past year, her account has grown significantly – and the trigger for that growth even has a name: Roberto. “When I got married, we received a framed picture from the City of Luxembourg with a half-naked man in it. We found it funny, and other people thought so too.”
A few days later, another video went viral – this time about a dog that wouldn’t respond to commands in Luxembourgish. “I wondered, is he untrained or does he just not understand the language?” As it turned out, the dog only understood French. “Only in Luxembourg do you have to start navigating through languages like that.”
She never expected her videos to become such a success. “You can never predict what Instagram decides to show people. I don’t think it’s about quality. Instagram just decides that this or that is what people want to see.”
Much of her content is created spontaneously: “Often, when I have an idea in mind, it doesn’t work out as I visualise it. So I try not to plan it too much beforehand and instead, I just see what happens. But often ideas simply come from things I notice and find funny.”
Despite her success, Instagram remains only a hobby for Sally Wagner, albeit one that takes time. “There was a moment when it occupied my thoughts a bit too much, when I was constantly thinking about it and working on it. I’ve scaled that back now because I don’t know how healthy that is.”
Currently, she invests around one to two hours a day in it. Instagram rewards consistency with more views and penalises sporadic posting. “There was a time when I felt immense pressure, mainly because of the algorithm. If you don’t post for a few days, it notices. So I often posted every day, sometimes several times a day. Now, for example, I take weekends off. I don’t do anything on weekends because, well, I don’t think it’s healthy.”
As long as her videos don’t go too viral, the feedback is mostly positive. And when it comes to occasional negative reactions, Sally Wagner knows how to deal with them: “Sometimes, if something really stands out, I use it for a video.” It’s also important to remember that those people don’t actually know her: “I don’t even know if they’re real people. So I usually find it quite funny.”
As a child, Sally Wagner had two dream jobs: cowgirl or writer. Both horses and books still play a major role in her life. She not only runs her own Instagram account but also manages the account of a bookshop in Luxembourg City, where she works. She describes her everyday life as incredibly varied: “Honestly, I wouldn’t want to do much else.”
Where her journey will lead in the future remains uncertain. “I’m not going to do this forever”, Sally Wagner says. “In an ideal world, I’d still like to become a writer, but that’s just as unstable a profession as being a content creator. It’s great for now and I’ll see what happens. I’m a bit open to anything.”
