Köln, one hell of a town.

I find it funny that everyone one spells Köln like Cologne except from the German people. It's the same in Wales, the English went in there and started renaming and spelling things. Seriously guys, what gives?

The first leg of Emily's German adventure took place in Köln with her awesome classmate, Nora. Nora's family was kind enough to put me up for about a week before I headed to Frankfurt for Christmas and New Years. The first thing that Nora did the day after I got off the plane was take me to the Köln Dom, the historic Cathedral in the center of the city. Köln Stadt law actually declares that nothing can be taller then the Dom, nor be large enough to block the view of the Cathedral. This Dom was one of the few buildings still standing after WWII, only one wall was left with a gapping hole. We went inside, and even though I never have known Nora to be religious, she took off her hat and insisted we shut off our cell phones, I obliged.

The Dom is absolutely massive. You walk around it and you misplace the size of it all because everything just towers over you. Nora gave me a proper tour. It is said that people who are from Köln are very proud of their city, almost to a fault (said from people that are from Köln). When inside the Dom, Nora had nothing but proud things to say, and I can understand that. I lit a candle for Nonni with a smile.

My German was hardly tested in Köln on account that all of Nora's friends were very excited about practicing their English. And since, over all, their English was much better then my German, we generally spoke in English. Which was good because I could talk with them, bad because I wasn't really practicing German at all. Nora's friends were incredibly kind, and we had a good time touring the town for the week. We went to Dusseldorf, Bonn, and all around the Christmas markets in the center of the city. I bought a handmade book cover that I have wanted for ages for less then 20 Euros. It is almost exactly like the one I saw years ago and wanted, but that one was almost 60 dollars. I might have waited years, but I think I made the right decision. :)

Oh, and the food! Nora's dad has a passion for cooking, and it was so nice to have a family sit down dinner with good food again. With Nora's parents I practiced my German, and they were very good at pretending to understand me.

The last night there Nora took me to a castle. This castle was (if I remember correctly) the final place the kings of Germany would come for their crown. They would travel from Dom to Dom getting blessing from Bishops as they went, and then were crowned in the Castle. There is a road leading directly from this castle to the Dom, on a clear night (or during the day, for that matter) you can see the Dom straight ahead.

Over all, Köln was a blast, and I can't wait to visit again.

Frankfurt has it's own tales, but that's to come...

Emily
Phil Bell Cafe - Bad Vilbel

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