Cologne 2 December 2019

Cologne      2 December 2019

We had an early morning walking tour of Cologne.  Cologne is Germany’s oldest city and home to Germany’s largest cathedral.  It is also the birthplace of eau-de-Cologne.  The Romans first came to Cologne in 38 BC and in 50 AD Emperor Claudius declared the city the capital of the Roman province.  In addition to the Cathedral, there are 12 major Romanesque churches that are older than the Cathedral.  As a result, Cologne became known as “Holy Cologne” and one of the most important pilgrimage cities in medieval Christendom.

Colorful Homes

Our walk started along the waterfront and although Cologne was badly damaged during WWII, most of the restoration preserved the old architecture.  There are many colorful homes along the waterfront and in the town.  Back in medieval times, they did not have house numbers.  Mail and packages where delivered by telling the mailman you house color.  It was actually Napoleon who introduced street numbers in Europe.  He was also credited with creating last names (prior to this people where known by their first name) and creating the right and left shoe (again, prior to this time, both shoes were identical). 

Carnival Sculpture

Neil Armstrong Monument

Cologne is known as a city of statues and monuments, and many border on the silly or mind-less.  Such were the next two sculptures – both dedicated to the yearly carnival that was held here where citizens would dress in crazy costumes or in costumes that made fun of people they did not like.  The next monument was one dedicated to Neil Armstrong.  The creator was certain that the plot of ground he built his stone monument on was directly beneath where Armstrong took his first steps on the moon.  Next were two bronze figures Tunnes and Schal, characters much like our Laurel and Hardy.  There are books written about their antics around the city.  And the last statue hung on the upper wall of a building is of a man ‘mooning” the people below – two versions of the story are that (1) he had a disagreement with his neighbor and thus hung the statue or (2) that he was making a statement against the town leaders.

Tunnes and Schal Statues

Mooning Statue

Rathause

Monument to the Slain Jews

We walked past the Rathaus (town hall), the oldest town hall in Germany.  And it is still in use today.  As the town and city government grew, an addition was added to the building.  On one side of the new building below each window is a sculpture of rectangular blocks (meant to resemble stones) that were put there in recognition of all the Jews that were killed in WWII.  When a Jewish person is buried, a stone is placed on (or sometimes in) the burial plot to keep the grave from moving   Near the Town Hall is a large excavation site.  The previous landowner was in the process of constructing a building when they discovered the ruins of a Jewish bath.  The town decreed that this was an historic find, confiscated the land (but did reimburse the landowner what he paid for the land), and are now building a museum over the site.

Close to the Cologne Cathedral was a fountain with a woman standing on top and a row of elves around the fountain.  The story of the Elves of Cologne goes essentially like this:

There once lived a group of elves deep in the forest where no one could see them.  However, as people moved to the forest area, the elves had to flee (they were scared of humans and thus wanted no contact with them).  They came to Cologne and discovered the old Roman sewer system that was no longer in use and felt it would be a good place for them to live.  One elf, braver than the rest, got up his courage to ask the Mayor of Cologne if they might live in the sewer system.  The Mayor said “no” that would not be possible as they had no employment and couldn’t pay taxes.  The elf continued and finally persuaded the Mayor that the elves would work at night cleaning up the streets and workshops that would benefit the townspeople.  The Mayor finally agreed, and the elves moved to the sewers.  Each night they would go out and clean up around the city.  All was well until one lady thought something was suspicious.  Her husband, the shoemaker, was not a tidy man.  Each night he would leave his shop a mess, but each morning it was clean and neat.  She decided one night to sneak into the shop and hide in a closet.  When she heard noise in shop, she opened the door and came out with a bright light.  The elves were so scared that they ran away, never to be seen again. 

The amazing thing about the fountain was that although the water had been drained – it was 2 December and the temperature was just almost freezing, the flowers that that been planted there in the summer were still blooming!

Fountain of the Elves

Flowers Still Blooming

When we walked into the old town square, our Trip Directors had a special treat for us – Currywurst.  This is a type of sausage that is steamed and then fried and served with curry ketchup.  It is a very popular street food dish.  It is also very delicious.  We all liked it so much our Trip Directors went back and got us some more.

Cologne Cathedral

Cologne Cathedral

Cologne Cathedral

The last stop was the Cologne Cathedral, the largest Gothic cathedral in Northern Europe.  Construction began in 1248 but did not finish until 600 years later in 1880, when it became the tallest building in the world at 515 feet.  Located inside the cathedral in a glass case (circa end of the 12^th century) at the end of the cathedral choir are the holy relics of the Three Kings or Magi which were stolen from a Milan Church.  This shrine is a masterpiece of goldsmith work and can only be visited on guided tours.   The choir also contains carved oak stalls, screen paintings, and statues made in the cathedral workshop between 1270 and 1290.  The Three Kings windows were installed in the early 1300’s.  Hanging in a chapel on the north side of the choir is the Gero Cross, reportedly believed to be the oldest large-scale crucifix in the Western world.  It was carved in Cologne in the late 10^th century.  On the south side of the choir is a painting entitled “Adoration of the Magi,” that was painted around 1445 in both the Italian and Flemish style.  For a wonderful view of the city and the Rhine River, you can climb the 509 stairs of the 14^th century south tower.

We visited the inside of the cathedral which, although it had beautiful stain glass windows, was relatively plan – not like the lavish cathedrals in Spain.  We did not have a lot of time as they were getting ready for 12 o’clock Mass, so we did a quick walk-around and left to go visit the Christmas Markets.

Inside the Cathedral

Stained Glass Window

The Christmas Markets in Cologne were the best we have seen.  You could buy just about anything you wanted and there was even a man creating wood sculptures with his chainsaw.  Of course, we had to sample their Glühwein, and as always, it was very tasty.  We even bought a large pretzel to go with it.  This is the last Christmas Market on the tour as we will be in the Netherlands tomorrow and Wednesday and they do not do markets.  We will, however, see more when we get to Brussels.

Returning to the ship we just had time to visit the Harbor Christmas Market which was only a block away from the ship.  In addition to the market, there is also a Lindt Chocolate Museum.  Bill and I went in and bought some of the Lindt candy to take home to the grandkids.  Then it was time for lunch and a Disembarkation Briefing.  It is hard to believe that we have only one more stop – Nijmegen – before we arrive in Amsterdam and the end of our cruise. 

Cologne Christmas Markets

 

In honor of our next stop, tonight’s dinner featured a Dutch dish called Volendammer.  It is a grilled marinated chicken breast on a bed of endive and served with mashed potatoes, carrots and chicken gravy.  Dessert was also a Dutch favorite – Poffertjes – small pancakes served with Advocate Sauce and Vanilla ice cream.

After dinner, the crew put on their talent show.  Although, what most lacked in talent was made up for by enthusiasm.  The best performer was one of the room attendants who was from the middle east and put on quite the quite the belly dance.  Wow – could she move! 

Crew Cabaret Dance

Belly Dancer