A Whiff of Cologne

"I believe in the sun even when it is not shining. I believe in love even when I do not feel it. I believe in God even when He is silent."

- Inscribed on cellar walls during the Holocaust in Cologne, Germany.

No city can and should be divided from its history - taking a look at Cologne, settlement can be traced back almost 2000 years when Cologne was still in the hands of the Romans, making it one of the oldest cities in all of Germany. Despite the 262 air raids during World War II which almost completely wiped out the centre of the city, Cologne was restored and now exists as the fourth largest city in Germany. Just a brief little history lesson to set the scene.

Friday night, Jakob had invited me to a house party which had been fitted out with an extremely inviting cocktail bar. I was having a good time meeting new people when I got a message from Victor pretty much saying "Go home and sleep. We're going to Cologne tomorrow, 0630 train. Be there". I set my alarm to 0500 and trammed it home - kahlua, baileys and vodka each enjoying a swim in my stomach.

Waking up at 0500 on a Saturday morning is something that I will, for the rest of my life, avoid doing EVER again. Despite looking like shit and having minimal sleep, I met with the others at the Haupbahnhof ready for the 5 hour train trip. I was surprised to find a group of 20 of us there, instead of just 5 as I had thought - but hurrah the more the merrier! The boys sung, hummed and screeched some songs for the first 20 minutes or so before everyone collapsed into a deep sleeping coma lasting the rest of the trip.

Sleep is the cousin of death.

Stepping out from Haupbahnhof at Cologne, the monstrous Kölner Dom (Cologne Cathedral) immediately slaps you in the face. I have no idea how to portray in words the sheer size of this cathedral to you guys, because saying that is almost 160m in height doesn't provide that shock factor as it does with seeing it with your very own eyes.

One size fits all... all of Cologne in it.

Exploring the Roman church took us a good 3 hours, which included climbing the 600 step spiral stair case.. and subsequently having to descend the 600 step spiral stair case. In spite of the fact that everyone's legs were noticeably trembling after the successful mission, it was well worth the trip (and exercise), because man, the view really is better from the top.

"Always remember that when you are on top of the world, that the earth rotates every 24 hours."

Despite the euthanasia of our poor legs, we decided to do some roaming of the city which included crossing several of the Rhine River bridges. One of the bridges had a truly unique feature to it; lovers from around the world would come to this bridge and "lock in" their everlasting love. Several locks had multiple names on them which Victor and I insisted were 'orgy parties' and so we had an immature giggle about it to everyone else's distaste. Afterwards, we decided that lunch had been well-deserved, and what better way to satisfy hunger here in Germany than a doner kebab.

Padlocks and no escape - kind of like marriage, right?

Chocolate Factory time! That's right kids, we got to visit the famous Schokoladen Museum where we were shown how Lindt's chocolates transform from tantalising, hot, free-flowing liquid goodness into snappable blocks of cocoa deliciousness. Indeed, we got to sample the end product. Amazeballs.

Disappointment is seeing no Oompa Loompas.

Chowing down some McDonalds for dinner, we had affirmed the satisfaction of our eyes and experience of beautiful Cologne. The rude 0500 wake up, clambering of the Kölner Dom - as well as everyone having to struggle through limited English, Deutsch and Spanish vocabulary - had taken its toll upon our bodies and our mentality, and indubitably, it was time for us to bid the city farewell.

I like to leave my blogs with some kind of theme to keep in mind, and visiting Cologne had refreshed to me as to why I love roaming the world. Summing it up nicely:

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime." - Mark Twain

The most important trip you may take in life is meeting people halfway.