The drive to Cologne, Koln in German, (if Dusseldorf is Dusseldorf why
is Koln Cologne?) was uneventful. The German Autobahn is too well marked. We
couldn't figure out all the signs for "Ausfhart" until we learned it means
"Exit". When we got to Koln, however everything changed. I got caught in
city traffic and with the streets so narrow and most parking in lots, there
wasn't any place just to pull over and get our bearings. So I just kept
trying to find a place to stop and  park for a while. Drove down a real
narrow street, but it wasn't a street at all, it was just for the trolleys
as one passed me going the other way with the driver just shaking his head.
We finally wound up in a park and parked the car in a line of cars that were
parked on the sidewalk of a street. Turned out that every one parked there
worked in the park, but no one hassled us.

     We decided to walk to the river (the Rhein) and get our bearings.
That's when we saw the Dom (the cathedral), it's the most impressive church
I've ever seen. We walked across a railroad bridge with a walk for pedders
and entered the town square. The Dom fronts a large paved open area with the
center square of Altstadt facing it, it's pretty wild. The place was filled
with all kinds of people. Locals rollerblading to tunes blasting from
boomboxes, tourists (plenty of tourists) some German, many others not.  Lots
of tourists in large groups. Hotels, restaurants, banks, office buildings,
all facing the square. We walked around the Dom a couple of times taking
pictures, checking out all the weird gargoyles, lots of them, two at each
corner at a level of about 40 feet, and there are lots of corners. No two
were the same that I noticed. We checked out the restoration work, which
never stops, each new piece hand carved, with the help of some power tools,
but still real impressive. Then we went inside.

     There was at least a dozen altars that I counted, two of which Mass was
being celebrated while all the tourists walk around oogleing and taking
pictures. Lots of neat old stuff inside also. One of the priests in a bright
red cassock came up to Zeke and said something in German. Zeke told him he
couldn't speak German and the priest said "Time for walking around is over,
you must go now", so we went.

     Went back across the bridge and walked to the hostel we wanted to stay
that night but they were booked. They gave us a map and directions to the
other hostel in town, down and across the river by the Zoo, which we never
saw, or smelled. We had some lunch when we got back to the car, sandwiches
we made at breakfast in Dusseldorf and beer we bought in our travels walking
around Koln. Five miles worth, by my reckoning.

     Drove to the Hostel by the Zoo, missed the turn, had to cross the
river, go 2 miles to the next bridge, cross the river again, come back the
two miles, and be sure not to miss the turn this time. We checked in to a
room for 5. We were told that we may be sharing the room if they needed the
space. This place was even more like a hotel than the other one, on the
large side. So we took a nap and prepared for a serious assault on the beers
of Koln.

     Next time.

Pictures - Dom far and near


 
 

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