Cologne

This morning, we woke up to our ship continuing to sail up the Rhine. We pass by larger cities and small towns, with lots of industry adjacent to the river.

After breakfast, we have German trivia in the lounge. A restful morning. It's been raining hard, but we're supposed to have sunny periods this afternoon when we are in Cologne.

We dock in Cologne, and it has stopped raining, and we have intermittent sunshine. Right where we are docked is a large bridge. Over 1500 trains per day cross this bridge. There are also 1.5 million love locks attached to the structure.

We leave for a 2-hour tour of the old town. During WW2, almost all of the old town was completely destroyed by bombing. The buildings have been reconstructed to resemble the original structures.

The Cologne Cathedral is the most famous building in Cologne. The cathedral began construction in 1248 and was completed in 1880. It is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world. The cathedral was one of few buildings that remained intact in Cologne after WW2. It was used by the Allies as a place mark to bomb around it. It suffered a number of direct hits but miraculously sustained only a little damage. Part of the reason was that it has a metal roof. This roof was a gift of the Prussians when the cathedral was being built. The cathedral has been a Catholic pilgramage site for over 1000 years, as it contains a large gold carcophagus that supposedly contains the remains of the three Magi. This is called the Shrine of the Three Kings.

After the tour, we returned to the ship and had a swim in the infinity pool. We had another lovely dinner, followed by a concert by a very gifted young violinist. A special musical treat!Meer informatie