Day # 17 Resting in Cologne/Koln.

                Slept in till an unconscionable 9.00am thanks to a youth hostel dormitory for eight that numbered myself as its only occupant. Relaxing breakfast and a walk out into the city that is mostly on the opposite west bank of the Rhine. It was fun walking the same streets that I visited annually in the mid 90’s during the period when I participated in the world leading confectionery trade show. Major changes are evident across the city centre area. Improvements to the former extensive tender-loin areas have resulted in their conversion to high end retail plazas.

           This weekend Koln is hosting a major Chinese cultural event with thousands of local Chinese and overseas Chinese tourists in town. Interesting to watch a mass “Tai Chi” on the Cathedral forecourt. Probably 300-500 practitioners, a mixture of Germans and Chinese, all dressed in white outfits, all moving in formation. In a country that has had its problems with xenophobia, it was to see this good-hearted display of multi-cultural tolerance.

          The famous Cathedral continues to dominate the skyline even with competition from the numerous 50 floor sky-scrapers in the central area. Apparently, the Cathedral was commenced in the 1200s and not finished until nearly 700 years later in 1880. It avoided only superficial damage while the city itself was 98% flattened 1942-45.

        I purchased the famous ‘4711’ Eau de Cologne for my wife and have at last learned from where the curious ‘4711’ name came.  Apparently, during the Napoleonic occupations of the city, the French regime initiated a new street numbering system, from which the factory and its famous brand took its name.

        Tomorrow, Sunday, taking a walk further down the west bank to Wesseling, about half way to Bonn.

Type of overnight lodging: Youth hostel.
Cost of lodging: 33E.