Happy Hour: Sunday through Thursday

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So Germany, good stuff.

We left Bremen and went to the magical city of Cologne. We had a picture perfect hostel to match the grandeur of the dom. For those that havent had the pleasure of going to the Dom, it is a Cathedral of immense preportions, and is the resting place of the three wise men. Although if they were so wise why dont they have a bigger shrine? Well maybe 2 out of the 3 deserve a better shrine but the guy that gave mir doesnt deserve anything. After touring the medieval and Roman remains that dot the city, we spent a relaxing day crusing the Rhine River.

We took the gruellingly slow yet picturesque train from Cologne to Koblenz where we proceded to board our ship. The trip was amazing as the countryside is littered with castles. The river cruise would normally have cost about $40 Euros, but with our Eurail Passes it was FREE!!

On our 3rd day in Cologne we took the train to Aachen for a day trip. Aachen is about an hour away by train, but is a completely different vibe than Koln. The main sight in the town is the dom, a much smaller church than the one in Konln but in our opinion much cooler. The main octagonal tower was built by Charlemagne in the 800s and it is decorated with mosaics and huge columns... it is fantastic. There are also floor-to-ceiling stained glass windows in a part of the church that was added later. Also cool is that Charlemagne's remains are in the church! After touring the dom, we went into the treasury and had a look around at various solid gold relics, huge crosses and statues of charlemagne dating back to the 1300s! After leaving the treasurey, we realized that it cost $4 euros each to go in, but we had managed to get in free without even knowing!! hahaha!

So we meandered down the the road for awhile before doing the most sterotypical thing a couple of backpackers could do. Have a spa day. No joke. It was riducul-arse for a couple of euros we were able to spend the better part of 3 hours getting whisked around mineral baths. There were 8 different pools of different temperature water, with jets, whirlpools and waterfalls in each one. It is a hard-knock life for us.

So that was Cologne and the surrounding areas.

Next stop Dusseldorf. We arrived in Dusseldorf this morning and after getting slightly lost finding our hostel (stupid European street numbering sytems!!) we arrived at a fantastic hostel and met our roomates, a girl from Richmond! and one from Aus! We then headed out to the Aldstadt (old town) of Dusseldorf for some sightseeing. Dusseldorf doesnt have too much to see but it has plenty to drink. It is known for having the longest bar in the world-- actually this doesnt refer to a bar, but streets and streets lined with over 200 bars clubs and restuarants.

And now the moment you have all been waiting for. The votes have been counted the preganent chits have been disgarded and all of Florida's votes count for nothing. The end result for the western German mullet count is: 26. Yes 26 kentucky waterfalls. Disgusting.

So thats all the news we have for now! We are spending tonight here in the 'Dorf', hanging out with some cool people we met in the hostel. Tomorrow we are off to the infamous Amsterdam for 3 nights of..... something!

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Hey Mom I actually made my own bed and did my laundry ---Love tj

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Comments

[Peter Wright]

That's 3 nights in Amsterdam of reading books and helping the homeless right?

[Marion]

Tough!
Sounds like the good life for you 2! I really thought backpacking was supposed to be a little more grueling than it sounds. Keep it up! M

[Mary]

great updates!
Hey guys, I'm so happy to hear that you're having such a good and interesting time. Your updates are so much fun to read!

[bingo]

brewery
Did you guys know there's another famous beer tour you can take there? Bet you did. Keep on keepin' on...