Today was the day we decided to take on the Kölner Dom a.k.a Cologne Cathedral. However, this particular one was different from other doms and kirche (churches) in Germany. First of all it is 475 feet worth of tower for the unsuspecting tourist to climb to get the best view of the city. That’s about 550 steps. Literally, from that high up you get a panoramic view of the entire city of Cologne and the surrounding area. Anyway, it was on my list of things I had to do, but not without grabbing a breakfast sandwich first.
We ate our breakfast on the steps outside of the Dom while I tried to mentally prepare for climbing one of the tallest towers. After eating, we decided to take a tour inside and got some amazing pictures out of it. If the outside isn’t stunning enough, the inside will really take your breath away. On walking in you are caught up in the grandeur of everything and the vaulted ceilings and towering windows. In the center of the church behind the alter is the Shrine to the Three Magi where their remains are supposedly located. The shrine is gold and silver and the surrounding area is decorated with apostles, prophets, etc. Even more impressive are the towers surrounding it which have engraved roses/flowers spiraling upwards. Nearly everything in the Dom is perfectly detailed and there are statuettes off of the towers, really words can do it no justice so you will have to check out the pictures once they get posted.
After I could get all the pictures I could possibly stand, we decided that now was the time to climb the infamous south tower. It was still very early so we were the only ones in queue for the tower other then a group of German children. Of course there were signs everywhere posted ‘No lift,’ but Chris and I were both pumped up and ready to go. So we got our tickets and headed for the narrow spiral stairs. In our defense, we both agreed the steps were steep, narrow, and uneven. There were huge indentions in the cement steps from all the people that had made the climb. Each step was significantly higher up than the next so it was not your normal staircase, and of course there was the dizzying spiral with no end in sight. It was a two way staircase as well, not that we wound up having to share on the way up, but you could barely stand side by side another person. The steps were only three inches wide at the center post aka when there is two way traffic someone has to use that three inch wide step. And to make the claustrophobia even worse, the only window to the outside world we had was every so often and of course covered by a metal grating and screen. 550 steps. It was only after 100 that I gave it the nickname the Damn Dom.
They do give you one little “resting place.” It is a narrow corroder that veers off and leads you to a bench next to the church bell. However, once the bell begins to ring it is not such an ideal place anymore. But it is nice to get out of the narrow stairwell even if just for a minute. Another disclaimer, when you think you’ve reached the top you really haven’t. You realize that there are more stairs waiting for you. These are a set of metal stairs which also seem endless and I think are in addition to the 550 stone steps. However, after we climbed that set for five minutes, we did make it to the top. And might I add we were the first people to climb the Dom on that day. We did make good time though because the expected time listed on the wall was 30 minutes and I’m pretty sure it took us 15-20 minutes including a little break. The view was breathtaking and worth the trip, but as I told Chris it wasn’t a view I needed to see in the next several years.
Climbing down as usual was much easier. This time we did have to share the stairs which made it tricky, but the hard part was over so we didn’t mind too much. The ironic thing is that even though you think you are done you are not. At the end of the spiral staircase were two sets of about 20 steps each leading up to the gift shop. Sigh. But I have to say if I lived in Cologne and climbed the Dom once a day, I’d be in the best shape of my life. Damn Dom.
Following our Dom adventure, we showered and checked out of our hotel and spent the rest of the day doing touristy things in the city before we caught the S-Bahn to our next location. We went to see the other art museum I was interested in called the Wallraf-Richartz. In contrast with the Museum Ludwig, it held a lot of Gothic art as early as the 13th century. The paintings were huge. The paintings were gory. And of course I loved it all. On the ground floor they had a nice collection of Mattise-esque paintings of the German landscape which were really enjoyable to look at too.
The final museum we went to was the local Chocolate factory aka Schokoladen Museum where they make their own Lindt chocolate. When we purchased our entry tickets we were given a handful of chocolate samples. I was loving the place already! The museum was pretty standard in that it gave a lot of information on the history of chocolate and then went on into Germany’s involvement. The whole museum smelled of rich chocolate and cocoa beans, and they had an atrium you could tour with lots of plants and horticulture. It reminded Chris a little too much of Florida and he was quick to find the nearest exit while I took my pictures. They also had a huge room where all the chocolate was made. It looked straight out of Willie Wonka with all the machinery and reams of chocolate being shot out of machines. At the end of the tour we were given free samples of chocolate on waffle sticks, also delicious, and they had sculptures of chocolate including one replicating the Dom (obviously not life-size).We had lunch at a little stand across from the chocolate factory and I had my first taste of currywurst. Not something I would ever order so I let Chris get that so I could take a sample and stick with the familiar brat. However, confusion struck as an entire foot long brat was given to me in a five inch long baguette. I don’t get it, and I still don’t get it, but that’s okay. That is apparently how it is served everywhere in Germany so I guess that means I’m the weird one for wanting it in a bun of the same size.
After lunch, we found a bike rental stand took out a 2 hour rental on a set of bikes and biked 8-10 miles up and down the beautiful Rhine River. And yes by the end of the day my legs were done, but that worked out nicely as we had a very uneventful rest of the day ahead of us. Around five we hopped on the S-Bahn which took us to the Cologne airport 30 minutes away from where we were staying. We picked up our rental car a Ford S- Max. Chris would describe it as ‘the egg’ on steroids (in reference to the rental car on the Maitland family’s last trip to Germany). It also comes complete with a hyperdrive lever for all of you Star Wars fans out there. Seriously, we’re not kidding. We have pictures. Once we figured out how to get out of the parking garage, the rest of the drive was easy. We headed eight miles south to the small town of Troisdorf, located between Bonn and Cologne, where we would be staying just the night. We had dinner at the restaurant in the hotel where I had my first weinerschnitzel. It was good, but I snuck ketchup on it when the waiter wasn’t looking with much eye rolling from Chris. What can I say? I’m American….shoot me.
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