Last weekend we had a scout camping trip and school play rehearsals get canceled for many reasons, not least of which was a rainy weather forecast. The kids had Friday off school thanks to an Italian holiday and parent teacher conferences. Last year John and My Boy took a road trip far enough north to get German food in Italy. So that became the goal for this week as well. To make this happen we took a last minute weekend trip to Germany. We found the cheapest tickets into Germany and went to Cologne.
I'd heard of Cologne, but didn't know anything about it. What a great city! We really enjoyed the weekend. The night before leaving I looked up things to do in Cologne. I was happy to see lists of 25 things to do in Cologne. Great! There are at least 25 things to do. We trimmed the list to a small handful and headed out.
Cologne is know for its Christmas markets. The decorations were starting to go up. We saw signs advertising the markets, but they don't start for a couple of weeks. If we had come over Thanksgiving the city would have been in full Christmas mode. I did pick up some pretty tree decorations made of straw. They look like stars or snowflakes and are traditional in Germany and Scandinavia.
We stayed in a fun budget hotel. The room was designed to be rented out by the bed, but for now is only available to families and small groups. It was basic but fun. The kids loved the cubby bunk beds. We liked the single room with four separate beds. There were lockers, but there wasn't a desk or any chairs, just two poofs. We could have used two more. Instead people hung out in the lobby where there were comfy chairs and tables. We spent a bit of time there one evening while My Girl finished up her homework.
One of the things we wanted to see was the
Stadt museum. It is a museum of the history of the city from Medieval to modern times. Unfortunately, it was closed in preparation for a move to a new location. Even though it was closed it was still an interesting building to see. The old museum was built in 1594-1606 as the city's armory or arsenal. It remained a military building until the 1919 treaty of Versailles demilitarized the region. After that it housed several different local government offices and later, the museum. The building, like much of the city, was heavily damaged during WWII. The exterior shell survived and the interior has been rebuilt.
I love the details on these old buildings. The building itself is rather austere and utilitarian. The colorful shutters and little soldiers on the shutter holders were delightful. In 1991 a
golden winged Ford Fiesta was added to the top of the stair tower as a "
temporary" art piece. It's still there.
The south side of the armory sits on an old Roman wall. Next to the building is a little plaza with a fountain made out of the old wall. There is even a statue of the Roman she wolf. It felt so out of place with a Gothic cathedral in the background, but it was a reminder of the reach of the Roman empire.
Cologne cathedral was impressive. It's the first truly Gothic style church we have seen. My Girl delighted in the flying buttresses and gargoyles, so different from the Baroque style that dominates Rome's churches. They say that Rome wasn't built in a day. Neither are Gothic cathedrals, especially this one. Building began in 1248 when the foundation stones were laid. Prior to this, the site had been the location for previous churches built in the 4th and 8th centuries. In the early 12th century the archbishop of Cologne "acquired" the relics of the Three Kings and brought them from Milan to Cologne. These relics were religiously significant and attracted pilgrims from across Europe. They were so important that the archbishop decided they needed a new cathedral that reflected their status. This new cathedral was planned in the fashionable Gothic style of the day and modeled after the new Gothic cathedrals in France. Work went on, and off and on, then paused for about 400 years before beginning again in 1840. Construction finally finished in 1880 more or less using the original plans. The whole thing reminded me of a novel I read years ago about the building of a Gothic cathedral. The book wasn't a favorite, but it was an interesting peek into what it might have been like to build something so massive.
The surface is black in places, not from dirt, but from a reaction of the sulfuric acid in the rain of industrial Europe and the stone. The exterior is constantly being cleaned and repaired, but it's impossible to have it all clean at once.
The interior was impressive as well. There were many beautiful things. I loved the vaulted ceilings and stained glass windows. One even had the images of the four evangelical saints with their symbolic animals. The reliquary of the Three Kings wasn't available during our visit. That part of the church is open on January 6, Three Kings day.
We took the time to climb all 533 steps of the South Tower. After the climb my pedometer said I had climbed 22 floors with more to come later in the day. I loved the view from the top and the close up view of the architectural details from the windows on the way up and down. Parts of the tower interior had dates carved in the walls. I noticed them beginning at 1870.
The weekend turned into a game as we checked off our list of things to do. Pretzels. Check. Yummy food. Check. Gothic Cathedral complete with flying buttresses. Check. Colorful fall leaves. Check. Shopping. Check check. There were even a few unexpected checks. Italian grandpa buskers singing Volare on a corner in the shopping district. Check? Or as My Girl says, "Achievement unlocked."
Food was the thing on the top of our list. Italian food is good, but we wanted something completely different, specifically goulash. We found a small neighborhood
place where they didn't speak much English and they looked at us funny when we walked in. That's a good sign. We sat at the table and ordered our drinks. The waiter asked us if we wanted to eat. We said yes expecting menus. Instead we were brought bowls of goulash and rolls. For a few euro you get a little bowl of yummy meaty slightly spicy Hungarian goulash and a crusty flavorful roll. Included in the price is a refill on the sauce. Of course we got the refills and extra rolls. There is only one thing to eat on the menu. There are lots of different beers, but only one type of food. John said it was in the top 100 things he has ever eaten in his life. We went back the next night. The waiter laughed at us and told us that they were closed on Sunday. We bought a can to take home with us. You can
order it online or pick up the 10 liter tub if you are having a party.
Cologne was heavily bombed during
WWII. It was the site of over 260 separate air raids and the first Allied 1000 bomber raid. The cathedral was even the site for a
tank battle before the German forces retreated across the river. The downtown has been rebuilt but many of the historic buildings were lost. We found a church that had only been partly rebuilt and is now a POW memorial.
"Prisoners of war are still waiting to be returned home"
The treasury is in the lower levels of the cathedral. Cologne was an important city and pilgrimage site during the middle ages. The church prospered as a result. Later in the 16th century money and gold poured into the Catholic church from the new world and even more gold objects were produced. I can't image the impact of the opulence of the cathedral and treasure on people living very simply in low stone houses. It would have been quite impressive.
Some of my favorite items were the tapestries and the stone work on display. I was also intrigued by the jewelry of a young woman buried in the church. The grave was discovered during 20th century renovations and excavations. Based on the coins and other items found it is estimated that she died before 526 AD. She must have been a wealthy woman. She had a headband, bracelets, earrings and other jewelry made from gold, silver, and garnets. It was all very finely made.
Three Kings tapestry
The kids enjoyed seeing the colorful autumn leaves in the open spaces and the park along the river. It felt so festive. The trees here in Rome either stay green or the leaves just turn a dull brown when they fall off. It isn't interesting at all.
We had a great weekend. It was the perfect change of pace and scenery that I didn't really know I needed.
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