While I do live on a continent that is exceptionally well connected by public transport, my residence is about as isolated as you can get from the rest of Holland and Europe. Zeeland was formerly a collection of islands, peninsulas, and mudflats, so the population has never warranted more than a single rail line. Regardless, I just had to get out and travel in a break-week.
Route from M'burg to Köln
Among various possible destinations for a short trip (Liege, Brussels, Lille, Hamburg, Duisburg, Frankfurt, etc.) I chose Köln in Germany. Also known as Cologne in English and Keulen in Dutch, this is Germany's 4th largest city and just five hours away on the train from Middelburg. So, I packed some clothes, snacks, and optimism, then rode some very inconveniently timed trains to this magical city!
I stayed in a hostel of both low quality and price, close enough to the station to hear trains going by and announcements on the loudspeakers. I arrived just before midnight and had a bed, comfortable enough, in a room too small for five other people. Pair this with poor ventilation, and I was very glad that I only went here to sleep.
Usually you see nice pictures on this blog... not today!
However, this tenement was exceptionally close to the city center. Köln is best known for its cathedral, one of the largest in Europe and once the world's tallest building. It's also the most visited landmark in Germany- I got there at around 9:00 AM and had the place almost to myself. Perks of travelling on a weekday in January!
It's hard to get the whole building in one capture- it's also in a perpetual state of renovation!
An imposing facade and the interior.
Cologne also lends its name to the fragrance Eau d' Cologne, invented here in 1709. So I toured that museum too, which was better than I'd expected! This is the Farina cologne, not the 4711 which also claims to be the original Eau. Scent mixing is a complicated business suffice to say... head notes, heart notes, undertones, you name it. It came with free scents and samples too. (no pictures allowed within the building... strange! Must be to protect the secret recipe)
The public transport is excellent; even by Euro standards. I took a city train out to an impressive forest and walked all afternoon, in warm sun with temps in the low 50s. Not bad for midwinter at all!
Seems the locals like to build forts in the woods too!
A swimming hole appears every so often.
I mostly found my meals at supermarkets and sausage stands; but one unique restaurant caught my eye and I had to investigate. It was build-you-own ramen bowl, delicious!
With bok choi, bean shoots, one egg, shrimp, shitake mushrooms, lotus root, and lots of chili oil.
The next day I was up early to climb the cathedral towers, which were closed yesterday for "technical reasons". Whatever those might be were unknown to me, since there are no elevators to break down. 500 something steps to the viewing level. When the Germans say "tower climb", they mean it!
I wouldn't want to be around at the top of the hour!
The botanical gardens also caught my eye, since they were free and easy to get to. It was a cold morning, so once again I had them to myself. Incredibly, they have palm trees growing there! The greenhouses were all closed for construction, but the outdoor specimens were plenty impressive for me. (I can only imagine how nice the place is when it's not winter)
They keep the camellias indoors but unheated. Many rare fern-trees in here too!
Again, flawless weather conditions. This is what I've earned after enduring two weeks without sunlight.
I explored a few neighborhoods, with the eye of a spatial planner. The city has one of the highest amounts of green space per resident anywhere, and it's used quite well! There are various park rings surround the inner city, where massive defensive forts were dismantled after WWI. But the centerpiece of this trip was still to come: The Chocolate Museum!
To my knowledge this establishment exists to commemorate the invention of a new kind of chocolate-rolling device in Köln circa 1840. For €12 you get seven pieces of chocolate, a surprisingly large museum, and access to the production floor of their mini-factory.
I was too enamored by sweets to take many pictures.
They acknowledge the colonial and exploitive past (and present!) of the chocolate industry. In fact, this was the majority of the museum section. It's typical of Europeans to ignore their many exploits, abuses, and unfair trade practices, so I was surprised to find this here.
On the left, a Picasso which I saw in the Museum Ludwig, and on the right some delight called Butterstreusel. Köln is an ultra-commercial city, and I spent a lot of time browsing around department store and outlet shops.
The trip was a short one; and I crammed a lot into it. There's a solid three days of stuff to see, but I'm plenty satisfied with my experience. There was one last reward to be had: a trip on the Deutsche Bahn, a rail carrier much more interesting than Nederlandse Spoorwegen. I left from Köln Hbf. at 6:40 in the morning on a highspeed train and got back to Middelburg (after two transfers in Utrecht and Rotterdam) and 11:30. These high-speed trains always feel more like ground-level aircraft to me!
Early morning in the Hauptbahnhof.
Now I find myself back in Middelburg, waiting to move into a new room at my apartment complex. I'm tired of life with a roommate and looking forward to some peace and quiet. That will probably be its own post, so until then!
