My previous post was written on the train to Cologne (or Koln as the natives write/say). As they say about the best laid plans... my connecting train sat on the tracks over an hour with a technical issue, and then there was a police incident on the local trains stopping most of them. Added to this, was the fact that none of the trains had the promised outlets, so I was running on two phones both under 20% battery. Bless the random German girl who let me travel with her to get to the main station at least... but I didn't make the 8pm reservation, and showed up at 9PM instead. Samy, his wife, and their friends were most gracious and kind. After a bit of food, we all walked to the train station and parted ways. Luckily I was only staying one stop past Samy and Evie and made my way to a beautiful Marriott hotel. While I've stayed at piles of Marriott's over the years, the hosts here were exceptionally kind and helpful. And later thoroughly confused when I requested two giant glasses filled with ice and tap water. Heaven forbid I don't drink bottled water, but they graciously served me (though I'm sure the stories of the American girl are part of their lore now).
The next morning, Samy had me meet him at the Koln Dom (Cologne Cathedral). We were staying on the other side of the river from the town center, and it was gorgeous to cross the Rhein in the daytime. I saw the spires of the cathedral through the train station roof, though nothing could have prepared me to stand in front of it. It was massive and awe-inspiring. I've toured many cathedrals in Europe, but the empty plaza that early in the morning gave me an opportunity to drink in the full nature of this giant cathedral. While many churches in Germany are protestant, this one is Catholic. It has twin spires, which guided many Allied bombers during WW2, and it is the tallest twin spire cathedral in the world. It is the 2nd tallest in general, after the Ulm Munster which I got to visit and climb last year, and is the 3rd tallest church in the world. We got to tour inside, and it was incredible to see the beautiful arches and massive stone architecture. It is rare that a portion of the cathedral is not being renovated, and fortunately many of the renovations were at a minimum. We also got to go down into the catacombs and see several tombs as well. It was an impressive church and I'm grateful for the opportunity to visit it in both the day and night.
In the plaza out by the church, was the renovated ruins of a Roman wall. It's incredible to see random structures from the Romans through all my European travels, and is awe-inspiring to think of how it was built pre-modern machinery and engineering.
After the cathedral, Samy took me through the town- the old and new marketplaces, walking through cobblestoned streets and getting the vibe of a city coming alive. We stopped for a delightful nut pastry called Nussekken (nut corner) a triangle shaped goodness. We walked along the Rhein for a bit, and were stopped from crossing the courtyard over the Cologne Philharmonic. The concert hall is underground and built for perfect acoustics. During performances though, something like a skateboard or even stilettos can be heard, and so guards are posted to keep anyone from walking across the roof.
Samy split to run some errands, and I crossed the Hohenzollern Bridge across the Rhein. It is known for the love locks, and it was incredible to see the many locks as the trains swished by me.
Then I walked a ways down along the Rhein to the Chocolate Museum, now owned by Lindt. While they had the history of chocolate there, the real treat for me was seeing their manufacturing equipment. And getting to sample some of their fresh chocolates!
Afterwards, I met Samy for lunch at a delightful Italian restaurant. I didn't know that the train had an underground labyrinth connecting stations and exits, and spent almost triple the time above ground trying to make my way across numerous lanes of traffic! Luckily the way back was much easier and faster through the underground city.
A few hours of work later, and I met Samy in the hipster area of Cologne, for a Vietnamese dinner and walking around a new neighborhood. Of course, there were a few stops at DM (basically a CVS type store) along the way for random snacks and things.
The evening ended with a stop at a brewery, making the Kolsch beer I had in Aachen. Kolsch is from Cologne, so it was special to try it at one of only three locations that serve the OG Kolsch (it's not bottled or shipped anywhere). As much as I wanted to like it, the bitter aftertaste hung in my mouth. There was a delightful waiter that had a circular tray with cup holders in it. He filled the cups on one round, waited for a bit for the foam to settle, and spun it around for more Kolsch. Samy gave me strict instructions not to make weird faces as I drank my beer, and it took all my effort not to, as I didn't want to offend the scurrying waiter.
My tour of Cologne was complete after a stop at Lidl grocery to pick up several pounds of chocolate to bring back to the USA. Walking around town with it was not fun though... especially after my lovely German trains once again got delayed, forcing me to miss my connection, and figure out more travel.
I'm so grateful for a wonderful little getaway, and for a kind former student that extended the invite. I didn't realize how much the weight of responsibility was already weighing on me. Being away from Luxembourg gave me a chance to truly unplug and relax, and simply enjoy myself, with a bit of retail therapy thrown in for good measure! Plus it built my confidence in my German language skills, which are incredibly slowly improving :).
Language skills slayyyy
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