Category: Miscellaneous

It’s the morning of the next day and we’re in Cologne. We arrived yesterday after a pleasant trip from Hamburg.

As soon as you exit the main station here you’re faced with this: 

 
That’s the famous Köln Cathedral, which has stood for over 700 years and survived the bombs of WW2. I had to climb it!

There are some 533 steps, mostly in a (poorly ventilated) spiral staircase that looks like this: 

 
It took me about 13 minutes to get to the top, but it was an extremely tiring climb since the steps are tall and since it was very warm in the staircase. It was certainly more difficult than The Eiffel Tower (which has more steps). Here’s me immediately after reaching the top: 

 
Interior view of the tallest spire: 

 
View of the city from the outside portion: 

 
The viewing platforms actually look like a prison, I’m told due to suicides. There is graffiti everywhere as well. This is one major attraction that is not quite as pretty close up as the others we have visited: 

 
After checking into our hotel (which doesn’t have air conditioning!) it was time for some brief shopping at the 4711 store, which actually has a fountain of the cologne you can dip your hand in! 

 
And then K, J and I did a whirlwind tour of a Chocolate Museum… 

Before we met three of my cousins (and their husbands) for dinner and drinks, which was great. Probably because of how tired I was I forgot to take photos so here’s another of the Dom as we headed back to our hotel near midnight: 

The trip was uneventful, and almost comfortable compared to some of my previous voyages. Despite a late departure from NYC we arrived more or less on time and rendezvoused with Bernard as planned at Frankfurt airport. We were in Deutschland! 

 
That’s our hotel. It’s in a great location and quite comfortable. The beds had gummis on them! After a brief respite it was time to explore the city… 

 
Frankfurt was bombed to hell back in WW2 and almost completely leveled but has been rebuilt into the financial hub of the EU, and as you can see they celebrate this! The CBD is a mix of skyscrapers and old-style buildings with an abundance of shopping and eateries. 

 
We followed the main pedestrian shopping district to a historic church for a gander. It was warm but not hot and the streets were packed with people. 

   
As usual, I lit a candle for mum and dad 🙂

  
We headed down to the river and found a large and wonderful fair going on, filled with amusements and rides and an incredible concentration of food and drink! 

   
Quite some time was spent here enjoying the sights and sounds and tastes! My companions all tried the local specialty ‘apfelwine‘, which is apparently ‘too wine-y’ 🙂 

 
I could go in for ages about how impressive this fair was but I’m still a little jet lagged! Suffice to say it was a lucky find. One end was capped with s gigantic Ferris Wheel: 

 
Which we all rode: 

 
It was great 🙂

By now (around 6pm) we were all getting droopy and headed back to the hotel to tackle our jetlag-induced exhaustion. Bernard and I grabbed some traditional food to snarf down before an early bed: 

 
There’s so many different types of sausage (and bread, and pretzel, and beer) that it’s hard to choose. That’s rindwurst and was delicious – ever so slightly spicy with a crispy skin. I’d eat it again in a heartbeat!

Tomorrow we’re meeting dad to complete the quintet! Stay tuned…