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Germany Cologne

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  • Luke PalmasEurope
    Day 11

    Arrival into Germany 🇩🇪 and Cologne

    November 14, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    Cologne certainly was a city I went to. It sure is a place on the Rhine that exists. Jokes aside, the gothic cathedral was awe-inspiring and the view from the Cologne Triangle was pretty good. What was not good was using German trains. I arrived 99 mins late to my next location Freiburg Im Breisgau.Read more

  • The Shifting SpannersEurope 2019
    Day 18

    Cologne

    October 7, 2019 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    A very cold day out and about in Cologne as our guide showed us around the massive Cologne Cathedral. The allied forces largely spared the cathedral during WW2 due to it's value, so it is in original condition.

    Also checked out the Eau De Cologne store (Farina fragrance museum), Lovelock bridge, and the city shopping precinct.

    We were warned about pickpockets, so were careful, but one of the young male passengers from our ship was shoulder charged by a young german bloke in the city...probably an anti-American sentiment we think.    Read more

  • Köln Fibo und HYROX
    Day 1

    Sightseeing Tour

    April 9 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    Unser Tag in Köln war einfach unvergesslich! Schon morgens starteten wir voller Vorfreude vom Hotel aus – mit dem E-Scooter düsten wir durch die Stadt direkt zum beeindruckenden Kölner Dom. Dieses gigantische Bauwerk hat uns sofort in seinen Bann gezogen – ein absolutes Must-See!

    Danach schlenderten wir gemütlich durch die Altstadt mit ihren charmanten kleinen Gassen und bunten Häuserfassaden. Es war so schön, sich einfach treiben zu lassen und das besondere Flair der Stadt aufzusaugen.

    Zum Mittagessen kehrten wir ins Peters Brauhaus ein, wo wir uns kölsche Spezialitäten – lecker und authentisch!

    Nach dem Essen holten wir uns einen Kaffee und genossen ihn entspannt am Rheinufer – mit Blick aufs Wasser, Sonne im Gesicht und guter Laune.

    Zum Abschluss ging es zur alten Stadtmauer und weiter zur LVR-Aussichtsplattform. Von dort hatten wir einen atemberaubenden Blick über die ganze Stadt – ein perfekter Moment, um innezuhalten und den Tag Revue passieren zu lassen.

    Ein wunderschöner Tag mit vielen kleinen Highlights und noch mehr gemeinsamen Erinnerungen.    Read more

    See translation
  • TravelerGermany 2025
    Day 3

    Rhine, Sunshine and Tapas

    March 29 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    After breakfast, even though I was already buzzing from caffeine, I couldn’t just walk past Bensons Coffee—they were practically down the street, and skipping them would’ve felt like a crime. Bensons, or as they call themselves, “Badass Coffee,” takes a no-nonsense approach to coffee. No sugary frappés, no over-the-top drinks—just pure, expertly crafted coffee. And they know their stuff. After the visit, I walked away very impressed.

    Fully caffeinated (maybe even a little over-caffeinated), I made my way to Cologne’s river promenade. Since I moved away, the city has put a lot of effort into making it more inviting, and it shows. The space is perfect for a stroll or just sitting in the sun, taking in the incredible view of the river and, of course, the iconic Kölner Dom in the distance. And with today’s blue sky, warm sun, and light breeze, it was Cologne at its absolute best.

    From there, I wandered into the downtown core, which was absolutely packed. Note to self: Hohe Straße on a Saturday? Never again! I made a quick shopping stop for some essentials before heading to the next big event: dinner.

    At El Alli Oli, a cozy tapas bar that has become a bit of a tradition for me, I met up with Sandra, Carola, Chris, Tobi, Alex, and Timo. We settled in for a long evening of catching up over delicious food and wine. I’ve been coming to this spot for over 18 years now, and every time, I walk out happy and full.

    Then, about an hour into our meal—another surprise! Michael and Felix had made reservations completely unbeknownst to me. More familiar faces, more unexpected reunions, and even more catching up.

    Hours later, we finally wrapped up the night, saying our goodbyes, stomachs full, and hearts even fuller.    Read more

  • TravelerEurope
    Day 47

    Köln

    October 20, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Brief history: established by the Romans in 50CE it has been a merchant city ever since. The Cathedral took 600 years to build and narrowly avoided being flattened in WWII with the rest of the city which required massive rebuild.
    Music scene is healthy and diverse. We found ourselves in an Irish pub listening to Aussie music and a quirky Jazz bar that has had live music every day for 1,400 consecutive opening days.
    Transport hub on the river, by road and rail. The train bridge over the Rhine has 6 tracks. The quality of the train services that we have used are amazing.
    Very large Turkish population here. It the largest ethnic minority in Germany. Thank for bringing yummy food here.

    Trivia: our first train stop into the Netherlands was Arnhem. The town gave its name to a ship that sailed into the Gulf Of Carpenteria in 1623 and in turn gave its name to the massive land mass we now know and love as Arnhemland.    Read more

  • The Rhine Getaway
    1
    Day 8

    Beer tour of Cologne

    September 4, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 66 °F

    Tonight we signed up for a Brauhaus tour with dinner and sampling local beer from Cologne. None of us are real beer drinkers but our traditional German dinner at Peter's and the beer at the other establishments was tasty. Even had Schnapps at one!Read more

  • Traveler2024 Travels in Europe
    Day 40

    Chocolate and Kölsch

    August 23, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Friday was a day for chocolate and Kölsch! Apparently, Germany consumes more chocolate than any other country in Europe, both per capita and in total, and there is a large chocolate museum in Cologne. We met up with Karl R and Emma to visit it. The museum, which is run jointly by the city and the Swiss chocolate company, Lindt, has exhibits covering all aspects of chocolate (except for one my sister, Patsy, brought up later in the day) and had a complete production line for small chocolate bars. The visit was interesting, and, since they gave out samples, tasty!

    Later, my sister Patsy and her husband Steve arrived by train. We all had dinner at the oldest brewery in Cologne, the Früh. Karl and Leslie Ruth had kölsch, a Cologne beer which must be brewed within sight of the Dom (cathedral) to be called Kölsch, and comes in small, 0.2 liter (6.7 oz) glasses. Kölsch, like many German beers is available alcohol free (this comes in larger bottles)..

    We reported on our visit to the chocolate museum and Patsy asked whether the museum mentioned that chocolate had cadmium and lead in it! Who knew? We said the museum did not, but did have an extensive exhibit on other issues such as child labor, poverty, and how little the people at the bottom of the chocolate making process get out of chocolate, and what companies such as Lindt are doing to combat this. But, nothing about cadmium and lead.

    It looks like there are limits to how much social consciousness the museum felt it could exhibit. But, we still love chocolate and will continue to eat it in moderation!

    We then returned to our hotel to rest up for Saturday, the Big Day!    Read more

  • Interrailing 2024
    Day 4

    🚞 Train 3 - Köln to Nürnberg

    August 14, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    A nice breakfast at the hotel before heading over to Köln Hbf to start the journey to Nürnberg.

    I picked up a laugenbrezel from Kamps, got an S Bahn ticket (having annoyingly timed my Kölncard out by an hour) and jumped on the S Bahn to Köln Messe/Deutz Hbf. This station sits on the Köln Rhein high speed line for ICE trains.

    In hindsight I think I could have used my interrail pass for this short trip, but at least I got a paper ticket for the scrap book.

    A short wait before catching the 0943hrs Duetsche Bahn (DB) ICE bound for München, although I would be hopping off earlier!    Read more

  • TravelerRoadtrip
    11
    Day 14

    Dublin-Köln

    June 25, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Noch anera eher sportlicha Fahrt fu Dublin bis Köln hemrs den au mim einta odr andera Radar im Gepäck gshafft ka📸
    Üs letst Station bis es wiedr ind Schwiz goht.🇨🇭
    Sind am Tag ir Stadt gsi nd hend üs mol fu dera Stimmig fu da Engländer inspiriera loh📣💥⚽️
    Dia Stadt het brennt🔥
    Geg da spöter Obig simer ins Tram richtig Rheinenergiestadion fu Köln ds Spiel England vs. Slowenia gu luaga.
    Super Stimmig, ds Spiel selber ish etz ni grad ds spannendsta gsi abr het sich deffinitv glohnt🙌
    Sind nochm Spiel zum Bus nd sind grad direkt witr richtig Schwiz gfahra.
    Noch guat 1-2h fahra het den dr Alternator dr Geist ufgeh nd üs zwunga zum ima nochglegena Dorf pbernachta nd am negsta Morga en KFZ Mechanika aufzusuchen ne🪛🧰💸    Read more

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  • TravelerEurope 2024
    Day 21

    20 May: Rest Day?

    May 20, 2024 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Today dawned misty, humid (91% humidity and heavily overcast). We were tired after the big emotional high of our Rembrandt Run yesterday. But hey, this was our last day in Cologne, and we won’t be back anytime soon, so we headed off through the empty streets (today being a feast day holiday) down to the mighty River Rhine. (Cue Wagner🎶 Siegfried’s Rhine Journey).

    The Rhine had swollen overnight. The riverside promenade was flooded, with Warning High Water signs closing access.

    We found our cruise boat and sat on the upper deck watching the City go by, while eating sausage and chips with curry sauce.

    A panorama of cultural treasures carefully reconstructed after the Allied bombing, cheap boxy housing run up after the war to house what was left of the people, and modern luxury apartments in interesting designs.

    From time to time mega barges would shoulder their purposeful way past us.

    In NZ we have seagulls. On the Rhine, ravens. I kept looking about anxiously for an old man with a floppy hat and one eye.

    After the cruise we walked back through the Old Market and main shopping areas. Interesting to look at but saved from temptation as they were all shut!

    Our last port of call was the Roman-German Museum. The Roman Emperor Augustus founded a city here in the first century CE: Colonia Claudia Ara Aggippinensium. This strategic site was a major military and trade centre. Soldiers, traders, workers, craftsmen, families came from all over the world, telling their stories in inscriptions and the huge numbers of everyday things like the 1.6 million objects , from boathooks to nit combs, retrieved by archaelogists from the bottom of the Roman harbour.

    Wealthy citizens lived in city villas decorated with mosaic floors, wall paintings, fine tableware, exquisite glassware and jewellery.

    We were running out of legs after viewing these treasures, remarkable because they all came from the same place over hundreds of years. Luckily the helpful lady at the desk pointed out a taxi stand a few metres away, so we gratefully took our throbbing feet home!

    Time to pack up and prepare for our big rail journey tomorrow - four plus hours north to Hamburg.    Read more

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