Our long weekend in Cologne and Bonn

Hello everyone! Just got back from our long weekend in Cologne and Bonn. We left last Friday afternoon. We stayed in a hotel near the main station so the first thing we visited was the Cologne Cathedral. It was amazing! It can be seen from nearly every point in the city centre and from many places elsewhere. It hovers above the roofs and chimneys of the city. It is not only used as a point of orientation but is the pride of the people in Cologne.

Then we met my friend E and went out for dinner. She’s my college friend and so nice to meet and chat with her again. We went to this cool pub, had curry turkey and snitzel, and drank some local beer.

On Saturday, Him Indoors and I took the train to Bonn. It’s known for the central Beethoven House, a memorial and museum honouring the composer’s birthplace. Founded in 1889 by the Beethoven-Haus association, it studies the life and work of composer Ludwig van Beethoven. Last time we were here, HRH the son wasn’t even born, so it was brilliant to be back!

Nearby are Bonn Minster, a church with a Romanesque cloister and Gothic elements, the pink-and-gold Altes Rathaus, or old city hall, and Poppelsdorf Palace housing a mineralogical museum. To the south is Haus der Geschichte with post-WWII history exhibits. There was also a market in the square so we had some wine produced locally.

Back in Cologne, we walked along the River Rhine. A lot of people were there so we had fun people watching.

On Sunday, we celebrated my cousin B’s birthday in the Old Waiting Room of the main station. We had brunch there. Cousin B was with her children and 2 other cousins from Essen were there, too. Great to see them all again. We had a lot of fun talking about the good old days. We walked along the Rhine to the chocolate factory. The Imhoff-Schokoladenmuseum was opened by Hans Imhoff on 31 October 1993. It is situated in the Cologne quarter of Altstadt-Süd on the Rheinauhafen peninsula. We had coffee there.

The cousins wanted to hear mass in the Cathedral so we walked back there, took some more photos and went our separate ways. That was a great long weekend!

 

For: TToT: 7/27/2018,  ALL SEASONS – FLOWER GARDEN,  Jo’s Monday walk : Sunrise on the Salt Pans,  Skywatch Friday – 26 July 2018 Edtion ,  Our World: End-of-July Edition,  Family Getaway at the Kimpton Sawyer Hotel in Sacramento,  Tell Me Something Good #118