Cologne, Blood Wurst and Pig leg

The last time I visited Cologne, I hopped off the train, looked up at the cathedral, felt the rain and cold and hopped back onto the train. That was it, everyone told me I needed to see the cathedral and I did. It left an impression of dark, looming and cold.

Today, we spent the whole day in Cologne and I loved it. From the Chocolate Museum, Roman ruins, and our stroll along the water front. It was really a great day.

Gene and I even followed the local tradition of locking our hearts together on the Cologne bridge (along with 20,000 others) and throwing the key into the Rhine River where it lay on the bottom with all of the other keys. We did see a few combination locks, those must be for the undecided.

We finished our day at an old pub eating traditional Cologne food and beer. Gene had blood wurst, which is made of dried blood in a pate', yikes!! I couldn't look. Note the celery "head dress", must be intended to improve the appearance.

I had, what the waiter described as, a roasted pig leg. And it actually looked like a pig leg. So glad I am vegetarian most of the time. But I must say the slow-cooked, roasted ham was really delicious. And Gene literally gobbled down the blood wurst with sauteed apples and onions.
















In the end, I have changed my impression of Cologne. It is certainly more than just a big scary cathedral and the origin of Eu De Cologne. Lots of history from Roman times, to the nearly total deconstruction from WW II bombings and now a vibrant city. Amazing resilience.

Cheers!!

Final note: we are staying in the country, outside of Cologne, in the hill cities. Beautiful view. We get the day off tomorrow to enjoy the forest and catch our breath.