20240826 Viking European Sojourn River Cruise Day 25/27 - Cologne, Germany - Cathedrals and parrots?

Viking European Sojourn River Cruise Day 25/27 - Cologne, Germany

We sailed overnight from Koblenz, arriving in Cologne, Germany bright and early. 

This morning, we saw the results of a cold front as temperatures were in the 50s but the skies were clear and the sun was shining. It made it into the low 70s by late afternoon so it was a perfect day for a walking tour.

We headed out at 9:30 for a walking tour of Cologne.

We were docked near a bridge

The famous Hohenzollern Bridge where lovers have locked thousands of paddle locks 

Great St. Martin Church behind the building

Narrow streets

The back of St. Martin

A typical residential area with apartments that rent for €2000 per month for 1,000 square feet - Germans rank lowest along with Sweeden for home ownership at 51%

We made a comfort stop at a local restaurant.

They had a great stained glass ceiling

The manager's station was a converted confessional

On previous tours, guides had mentioned Stolperstein or tripping stones, or even more literally, stumbling blocks. Initially conceived and started in 1992 by the German artist Gunter Demnig, the concrete cubes with brass plates are put in place of cobblestones in front of the last address where Jews lived freely before Nazi Germany systematically eradicated them. Their fate is also inscribed - relocation, and even death.

This family fled to the U.S.

Three members of this family fled to England while one met his fate in Auschwitz

They are installed all over the former Nazi-controlled areas in Europe and serve to honor those whose lives were impacted or lost and as solemn reminder of the atrocities of the Nazi regime and a reminder for future generations that this should never happen again.

Jan von Werth-Brunnen

City Hall on the left

The story is that this man was beheaded and in a final act of defiance, he stuck out his tongue, so it was immortalized on City Hall

Cologne Cathedral or Cathedral of St. Peter

At 515 feet, it is the tallest twin-spired cathedral in the world, the second-tallest church in Europe, and the third-tallest church of any kind in the world

It was started in the 1200s but with delays and stoppages, wasn't completed until the 1800s - it was badly damaged during WWII but has been rebuilt

The building is absolutely massive

The ceiling height inside the church is just over 142 feet!

There were multiple organ pipe locations throughout the interior

The floor was an intricate mosaic

More pipes

These windows were over 60 feet tall

The stations of the cross were shown in reliefs on the wall - this is station #1

A peace artwork outside the church - Israel was conspicuously absent

We continued our walk.

Eequestrian statue of King Friedrich Wilhelm III 

We returned to Lofn for lunch and then headed out for more exploring.

Looking south, we see the Lindt Chocolate Museum and a Ferris Wheel

Arlona's favorite chocolate

We went into the museum, but it cost around €15 per person and we didn't feel like ponying up about $35 to look at chocolate. We walked around the store, but it was just chocolate.

Malakoff Tower

German engineering at its finest

Klein St. Martin doorway

Klein St. Martin

Basilica of St Mary

Pay attention to the trains!

Old architecture merged into new architecture

Commemorating Protestant Christian beginnings in Cologne in 1802

The pedestrian shopping area was vibrant and packed on a Monday afternoon

Sacred Heart Church

St. Kolumba

We walked through an eclectic art store - they didn't allow photos, but there was no ban on photos outside the store. This is a small part of what they had. It was kitschy and fun.

14,000 steps later, we found our way back to the ship and headed up for a well-deserved cocktail.

After dinner, we walked off the ship. There was a lot of noise, specifically bird noise. It turns out that some time ago, parrots escaped from a local zoo, got busy, and have now produced a huge swarm of parrots that seemingly are terrorizing Cologne. As the sun goes down, they gather in trees, squawk loudly, and poop all over. We found it fascinating, and even with the failing light, caught a couple of passable photos.

Tonight's entertainment was Liar's Club - the host presents several words and the players give definitions - one being correct and the other being outright lies. The lies, and the correct definition, are always funny and entertaining. The audience has to guess which is the correct definition and it all makes for a lot of laughs.

Tonight's words - and the actual definitions:

• Gardyloo - a warning cry given before throwing dirty water from a window
• Goofang - A large river fish that evolved to swim backward in a futile attempt to keep the water out of its eyes
• Titup - to move in a lively manner often with an exaggerated or affected action - we've had this word before and the definitions given tonight didn't match this
• Anatideaphobia - the fear that somewhere out there in the world, at any time, a duck may be watching you
• Fullfart - another repeat for us - as fast, energetically as possible - typically as in a direction from a boat captain for full speed ahead

There were a lot of laughs throughout the lounge and everyone had a great time.

We sailed shortly after 10:00 and will be sailing until tomorrow afternoon when we dock in Kinderdijk, The Netherlands for some windmill wandering.