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Published: March 22nd 2008
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The weekend trip has been full but still fun. At first, I thought it was exhausting to leave for our trip to Bonn, Dusseldorf and Cologne right after class on Thursday but now it feels nice to be heading back and settling in on a Saturday night. Last weekend, I was anxious to get back but this trip seemed to be the perfect amount. We spent two nights at the same place, a hostel in Bonn, which helped make it more relaxed.
When we arrived in Bonn on Thursday night we checked in then headed out for a night to explore the town and get some dinner. It is a clean medium-sized town with plenty of shops and beautiful buildings (as most of Germany is filled with). In the center of downtown, a big tent bursting with costumed young people and a loud band's music filled a large brick courtyard. It was the perfect amount of bustle--I'm sure its much more insane at night in Cologne during this time of the year. We experienced some of the insanity just in the train station during a quick train switch in Cologne.
After getting a feel for the city, we settled
in at an underground restaurant which served mostly German food but many had a Spanish flair. For example, Caitlin and Micki ordered German meat dishes with gravy and a hot chili pepper was the garnish, ha. I ordered goulash with bread. It was delicious and tasted like shredded beef in brown gravy. I wasn't full enough though so I ordered boiled potatoes, which came with onions and bacon. It tasted OK but was way too greasy. We ate the German way--relaxing, taking it slow and spreading the experience over a few hours. The middle-aged men at the table over from us greeted us and we found out that one of them lives in the suburbs of Boston and lived in Bonn for some time. When he stood up he towered over our table; his friend informed us that he used to be a pro-basketball player! We were pretty excited. Whitney was instantly in love. Ha.
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On Friday, the group split. Micki and I were travel buddies while Caitlin and Whitney wanted to go off and check out Caitlin's ancestry in Minden.
Micki and I first visited Bonn's cathedral then headed to Beethoven's home and birthplace on
the way over we walked through the town square. It was so lively and fresh looking. Stands of colorful fruits and vegetables abounded. The bright, deep red cherries and white pears tempted me.
When we reached Beethoven's house, the experience was even better than I expected. I saw a piano Beethoven played on as well as letters, music, paintings, his ear pieces and various other instruments used by the music legend. One of my favorite parts was a magical 3D digital performance of his musical operas. The translation into English played across the top of the screen over the rhythmic dancing art. The words were so passionate and the notes soared. I soaked it all in. It made me want to watch Fantasia or go to an opera. It left me wanting more. What a wonderful memory made.
After we left Beethoven's we were off for an afternoon visit to Düsseldorf, the state capital.
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Düsseldorf was nice, not phenomenal, but nice and worth a visit. The part of the city by the Rhine is very picturesque. It was cold and the trees are still bare so I imagine it's even more of sight to see
in the spring/summer. As we walked through the city we first traveled down the "Ko": top designer clothes/jewelry stores lit a glitzy strip through the city like the $18,000 diamond bracelet in the Cartier jewelry window. We drooled at the window of a lucky mannequin saying its labels name in a posh accent.
Then we went through another part of the city that was magical in a different way. Germany's oldest park lay before us and it was not only old it was extremely large! It seemed to go on forever. Around each bend an artsy character character greeted us. A huge pond filled with a dozen swans kept us a while. In the last section of the park a small green house sat under the tall trees. It reminded us of the one Snow White slept in in the heart of the woods, waiting for her prince to come. Instead of Snow White napping in the glass enclosure, there was a tree stump lay there. We think there was some kind of artistic statement being made but couldn't read the sign explaining it. It entertained/amused us just the same.
That night we headed back to Bonn for
dinner. We were hungry and ready for a break...to just relax and warm up. We found an acceptable place (kind of expensive!) and I just ordered a small cheese pizza. Pretty usual, but it worked. We had nice conversation and the night wound down from there.
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Today we explored Cologne. It was so exciting and simply enjoyable to be part of the Carnival festivities. As we walked down the street through costumed people of all ages the mood was light. Balloons, costumes, drinks, decorations and more filled the streets. Random mini parades or bands burst through the crowds, raising the spirits.
The only downer of the time in Cologne was that the wonderfully detailed cathedral was closed for the holiday. Mom had told me so much about its delicate intricacies and how it stood out among all the cathedrals of Europe that she and her college friend, Pam, visited years ago in college. Oh well, at least I got to see its beauty from the outside.
Overall, it was a smooth full weekend with good company and memories. Thank Jesus for the blessing.
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