Fussball fieber

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After a short but relaxing visit to see friends and their toddler in the wine growing region south of Frankfurt, it was time to visit some parts of Germany which Luke knew but which were new to me.

For obvious, war related reasons, there aren't many historical sites left in Koeln, apart from the cathedral. However, it's impressive enough to make up for it, with vast towering spires and immense stained glass windows. Inside there is an incredible feeling of space, despite the inevitably high number of tourists there at any given moment.

The day we arrived was the day of the Germany v Italy semi-final and from lunchtime onwards the town was gearing up for it, becoming increasingly schwarz, rot, gold as the day went on. We sat by the river, feeling slightly guilty for eating italian icecream, but had previously sampled a few glasses of Kolsch, the local lager type beer served in thin, tiny (200ml) glasses to keep it cold, so had built up German credits already.

The Fan Fest zones in the town centre looked too busy, so we headed across the river to the larger ones on the river bank. After queuing to get in we realised we'd have to queue each time we wanted a small beer or a water to counter the searing heat, so headed back to the old town to find a bar with TVs and outside seating instead. The atmosphere was brilliant, with flags everywhere and the singing building up towards kick-off. All shops must have sold out of their stock of clothing in black, red and gold judging by the amount of it around town. There were numerous locals of italian descent mixed in the crowds, but all the banter was good natured.

As the match developed into one of the best, action packed games of the tournament, the tension heightened as everyone around us was focused on the game, apart from the schoolgirls on the next table, more concerned with their diaries than the football fever gripping the rest of their nation. As extra time drew towards the end, everyone was anticipating penalties, but having seen the Italians snatch victory before, I was nervous as the last few minutes approached. When they scored, it was as it someone had pulled a plug out as all of Germany went silent for a moment in horror. The second goal sealed their fate before the team, and the fans, had time to rally. The end of the match was greeted with incredulous head shakes and we walked back to our hotel feeling very flat, as if the party balloons had just been popped.

The following day was time for another trip down memorty lane, this time for Luke when we caught the local train out to Leverkusen, where he'd spent a few months on a student placement at Bayer 11 years before. A quick look wander around, to check out the halls where he'd stayed, followed by lunch at his old local pub, Notenschlussel. The same bearded man still ran the place, and was happy enough to chat to us, claiming Luke looked familiar (although we suspect he was just being polite). With half the day still to go and the rail passes at the ready, we continued on to Dusseldorf for a quick look around. Unfortunately, the good weather broke again so we saw more department stores than planned, before being able to have a look at the old centre, with its streets jammed with designer shops, numerous restaurants and inviting looking bars, which we resisted and wandered by the Rhein instead. We contemplated taking a boat back down to Koeln, the one used by the Pope on his visit last summer being the top option, but in the end end, the speed of the ICE trains won over.

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Comments

[Tracy]

Eye of newt and tail of frog.......
Laura, the picture of you with the beer makes you look like a mad scientist in your lab mixing evil potions and lotions Mwaa haa haa haaaaaaaaaaaaaa..................