Boxing Day morning we were up early allowing plenty of time to get to the airport. The plan was to take a train to Clapham and then take the EasyBus to the airport. In true London transport style, the morning was bit of a nightmare! The trains on the line we needed weren’t 
running, so we had to go to Victoria (after severe delays) and take the Gatwick Express ($$$). Finally we made it to the airport and were on a plane, so happy to be leaving England!
On arrival in Germany we took another train to the Meninger Hostel in Cologne. Apart from everything being in German, it wasn’t too difficult to find our way. The hostel had nice dorms and a kitchen and bar downstairs. Its bit of a hotel too, with a buffet breakfast in the mornings (extra cost).The couple of days the city was dead, being a public holiday and then a Sunday, none of the shops were open, so we ended up having breakfast at the hostel.
Our first night we went for a bit of a walk around the streets near the hostel and found a restaurant called Paprika. Apart from cheap cocktails and a friendly waiter, we got our first experience of German food, huge serves, tasty and cheap! Damien had a big pork schnitzel with caramelized onions and pommes fritters, while Christine ordered a chicken breast fillet which was very tender, both came with a big salad.
Our first day in Cologne was Sunday and nearly everything was closed. After our big breakfast we went for a walk through the city (everything is walking distance). Sadly most of the Christmas markets finish
a few days before Christmas which we were hoping might have been open for a day or two after Christmas. Were staying between the Uni district and the Rudolfplatz which has a tower that used to be a part of the city walls. We wandered past Neumarkt which had a Christmas market being packed up, we were laughed at when we started taking photos! There is also a giant cream cone sculpture on top of one of the buildings, very cool! From here there is a series of pedestrian streets and shopping areas all the way to the Dom Cathedral and main part of town. We wandered along these window shopping (the best kind of shopping) along the way. We did see some very cute Christmas windows in one of the department stores. 
This lead us to the Dom, which is a massive gothic cathedral. As all the tourist guides suggest we walked right around it before entering, to admire the architecture and get a feel for the scale of the building. We briefly looked inside it also, but due to Sunday Mass, this was quite restricted.
After church we headed to a beer hall, ‘Fruh Am Dom’, quite close to the Dom. It was a very cool place, made up of many different rooms. Most of them were underground. From street level you walk through a normal looking bar before heading down a series of stairways and hallways to different rooms with different seating arrangements. We did about 2 laps befor finding 
an empty seat the place was huge but packed. The local beer is Kolsch, several different local brewerys make it. It getsnits name from Koln (Cologne), so any Kolsch must be made in Koln. What we weren’t expecting was the serving size. No massive beer steins here, just tall thin 200ml glasses. The waiters serve it to the table, so you don’t have to spend the whole night lining up at the bar! Apparently its traditional in Cologne to serve small beers, so that they are always cold and fresh.
Tonight we just hung out at the hostel, cooked some pasta and had beers with some Aussies!
Monday morning we got up a bit earlier, had our breakfast and headed to the HBF (main train station). We 
jumped on a train to Konigswinter, about 45 minutes away. This is a nice little German town that we spent the morning walking along a small street of shops, pubs and churches. The town is on the Rhine River which we wandered along for a bit before starting a walk up into the Siebengebirge (Seven Mountains). We actually only walked up one ‘mountain’, which had a few pubs and restaurants along the way (most of them closed) and a ‘fairytale like’ castle. At the top of the hill was the ruins of the Burgs Drachenfels, which is what is left of an old castle. There is also some myth or tale about a dragon in the area, although were not sure how the story goes, all the signs were in German. 
On the way down we stopped in one of the open café’s for Kaffee and Apfel Strudel. Back in Kon
igswinter we went into a small pub, and as soon as we walked in everyone was just staring at us! Were not sure if this was because we were English speaking or they liked Damien’s big blue jacket! There were only about 15 people, probably all locals, sitting around the bar. We sat down and had a few Kolsch, before heading back to the train station.
Before we headed back to the hostel we found another pub (bierhall) called Schreckenskammer. We had heard somewhere that this one has particularly good food. After a few more little beers we had a traditional German feed, Christine tucked into a Pork Schnitzel and Damien had the Schenkenhamchen, which was a boiled pig hock served with mash potatoes and sauerkraut. The hock looked like a whole pig leg on a plate and the sauerkraut, while still not my favourite food, was much more edible than what I have tried in the past.
running, so we had to go to Victoria (after severe delays) and take the Gatwick Express ($$$). Finally we made it to the airport and were on a plane, so happy to be leaving England!On arrival in Germany we took another train to the Meninger Hostel in Cologne. Apart from everything being in German, it wasn’t too difficult to find our way. The hostel had nice dorms and a kitchen and bar downstairs. Its bit of a hotel too, with a buffet breakfast in the mornings (extra cost).The couple of days the city was dead, being a public holiday and then a Sunday, none of the shops were open, so we ended up having breakfast at the hostel.
Our first night we went for a bit of a walk around the streets near the hostel and found a restaurant called Paprika. Apart from cheap cocktails and a friendly waiter, we got our first experience of German food, huge serves, tasty and cheap! Damien had a big pork schnitzel with caramelized onions and pommes fritters, while Christine ordered a chicken breast fillet which was very tender, both came with a big salad.
Our first day in Cologne was Sunday and nearly everything was closed. After our big breakfast we went for a walk through the city (everything is walking distance). Sadly most of the Christmas markets finish
a few days before Christmas which we were hoping might have been open for a day or two after Christmas. Were staying between the Uni district and the Rudolfplatz which has a tower that used to be a part of the city walls. We wandered past Neumarkt which had a Christmas market being packed up, we were laughed at when we started taking photos! There is also a giant cream cone sculpture on top of one of the buildings, very cool! From here there is a series of pedestrian streets and shopping areas all the way to the Dom Cathedral and main part of town. We wandered along these window shopping (the best kind of shopping) along the way. We did see some very cute Christmas windows in one of the department stores. This lead us to the Dom, which is a massive gothic cathedral. As all the tourist guides suggest we walked right around it before entering, to admire the architecture and get a feel for the scale of the building. We briefly looked inside it also, but due to Sunday Mass, this was quite restricted.
After church we headed to a beer hall, ‘Fruh Am Dom’, quite close to the Dom. It was a very cool place, made up of many different rooms. Most of them were underground. From street level you walk through a normal looking bar before heading down a series of stairways and hallways to different rooms with different seating arrangements. We did about 2 laps befor finding 
an empty seat the place was huge but packed. The local beer is Kolsch, several different local brewerys make it. It getsnits name from Koln (Cologne), so any Kolsch must be made in Koln. What we weren’t expecting was the serving size. No massive beer steins here, just tall thin 200ml glasses. The waiters serve it to the table, so you don’t have to spend the whole night lining up at the bar! Apparently its traditional in Cologne to serve small beers, so that they are always cold and fresh.Tonight we just hung out at the hostel, cooked some pasta and had beers with some Aussies!
Monday morning we got up a bit earlier, had our breakfast and headed to the HBF (main train station). We 
jumped on a train to Konigswinter, about 45 minutes away. This is a nice little German town that we spent the morning walking along a small street of shops, pubs and churches. The town is on the Rhine River which we wandered along for a bit before starting a walk up into the Siebengebirge (Seven Mountains). We actually only walked up one ‘mountain’, which had a few pubs and restaurants along the way (most of them closed) and a ‘fairytale like’ castle. At the top of the hill was the ruins of the Burgs Drachenfels, which is what is left of an old castle. There is also some myth or tale about a dragon in the area, although were not sure how the story goes, all the signs were in German. On the way down we stopped in one of the open café’s for Kaffee and Apfel Strudel. Back in Kon
igswinter we went into a small pub, and as soon as we walked in everyone was just staring at us! Were not sure if this was because we were English speaking or they liked Damien’s big blue jacket! There were only about 15 people, probably all locals, sitting around the bar. We sat down and had a few Kolsch, before heading back to the train station.Before we headed back to the hostel we found another pub (bierhall) called Schreckenskammer. We had heard somewhere that this one has particularly good food. After a few more little beers we had a traditional German feed, Christine tucked into a Pork Schnitzel and Damien had the Schenkenhamchen, which was a boiled pig hock served with mash potatoes and sauerkraut. The hock looked like a whole pig leg on a plate and the sauerkraut, while still not my favourite food, was much more edible than what I have tried in the past.
Tuesday morning we slept in as long as we could before checking out of the hostel and moving to a hotel for our last few nights in Cologne. We ate breakfast at a Crepe restaurant near the hotel and then went for a walk t
hrough the Lindenthal (park) and the Uni district. Christine was particularly excited by the pond which had frozen over, although she didn’t dare walk out on it… chicken!
After check-in to the Mercure, and having a siesta, we wandered down to the Huemarkt, which is a square in town which we had heard still had a Christmas market. This was true but not much of it was left, just the ice skating rink and a few food and drink stalls. We ate a late lunch, Bratwurst at the market and had a bit of a look around. We wandered through the old town which was nice, cobbled streets and old German buildings. We took a few photos of the Dom all lit up at night and then wandered home looking for somewhere for dinner.
We ended up eating at a Vietnamese as we were both hoping for something a bit healthy after all the brilliant meat and pommes frites. The food was good, served by a woman from Vietnam, who spoke both German and English, very impressive. In particular the beef noodles with fresh herbs were delicious!
hrough the Lindenthal (park) and the Uni district. Christine was particularly excited by the pond which had frozen over, although she didn’t dare walk out on it… chicken!After check-in to the Mercure, and having a siesta, we wandered down to the Huemarkt, which is a square in town which we had heard still had a Christmas market. This was true but not much of it was left, just the ice skating rink and a few food and drink stalls. We ate a late lunch, Bratwurst at the market and had a bit of a look around. We wandered through the old town which was nice, cobbled streets and old German buildings. We took a few photos of the Dom all lit up at night and then wandered home looking for somewhere for dinner.
We ended up eating at a Vietnamese as we were both hoping for something a bit healthy after all the brilliant meat and pommes frites. The food was good, served by a woman from Vietnam, who spoke both German and English, very impressive. In particular the beef noodles with fresh herbs were delicious!
Wednesday morning we found a bakery café near the hotel for breakfast. Christine had fun trying to order in German, but I think her pointing at the food was what helped out the poor woman serving her. We then walked across the Severinbrucke (bridge) and along the east side of the Rhine. This neighbourhood is called Deutz and had a couple of churches and a main shopping street. We were looking for a nice little bratwurst shop, but didn’t have any luck. We walked back across the Hohenzollernbrucke, which is the main bridge in Cologne. The bridge is covered in padlocks, bit of a tradition here that engaged couples come and put a pad lock on the bridge and throw away the key. 
We spent the afternoon in the old town again and also did some tourist shopping. Christine bought some wooden carved decorations and Damien bought a Beer Stein!
Tonight there was a fog in town which again made the Dom look different, the top of it was not visible. We ate dinner at another beer hall, Malzmuhle. We had hoped to come to this place on new years but found out that it was going to be closed. Dinner was very nice and huge serves again. Schnitzel and chips, Christine had lamb in a syrup sauce. The waiter was very friendly and brought out a cup of the syrup when she asked what it was, apparently its made from Rubenkraut.
We spent the afternoon in the old town again and also did some tourist shopping. Christine bought some wooden carved decorations and Damien bought a Beer Stein!
Tonight there was a fog in town which again made the Dom look different, the top of it was not visible. We ate dinner at another beer hall, Malzmuhle. We had hoped to come to this place on new years but found out that it was going to be closed. Dinner was very nice and huge serves again. Schnitzel and chips, Christine had lamb in a syrup sauce. The waiter was very friendly and brought out a cup of the syrup when she asked what it was, apparently its made from Rubenkraut.
Thursday was New Years Eve and our last night in Cologne. As we have done a few times in Cologne, 
we slept in. After breakfast at the same bakery as yesterday, where they had some cinnamon doughnut type things with raisins in them. We had planned to go to the Chocolate Factory in town which Christine was excited about, but sadly this was closed for New Year. Instead we wandered through the town, took a few photos of things we not photographed. We were headed to the Rudolfplatz area which has bars and restaurants. We chose a nice bar called Hooters to have a few beers at. Although we were a bit early, and had to wait an hour before they opened! This is the 4th Hooters Bar we have been to this year, ahhh, good times. We will have to try and beat that next year! 
On the way back we headed to the Vietnamese restaurant again, but it was closed. We ended up having Thai up the road. The waiter was again very friendly, and kee
n to find out about Australia as he was headed Down Under next year. After giving him a list of things to see and do he was very happy and gave us some Thai keyrings and free Cocktails. A few more beers at the hotel while we tidied up a bit and got ready to head out for the night.
We weren’t really sure what we were doing for New Year but headed down to the old town. We ended up in a beer hall, which was great. More like we had imagined a beer hall to be, crowded, people dancing and singing to German music, although still small beers!
At about 11.45 we headed down to the Rhine River, via the bottle shop, to watch the fireworks. As we stepped out of the beer hall it started snowing, was really amazing. The fireworks were crazy! Not like in Australia, where its done professionally. There were thousands of people along both sides of the river, and everyone brings there own fireworks to set off. They set them up in the gardens or just on the footpath. The scene was insane, smoke filled the air and fireworks being launched less than a meter from people. Some of them would fly off at angles hitting the buildings or others were going straight up but falling before they had finished exploding. There was no countdown to the New Year, which really didn’t matter, as I can’t count backwards in German anyway!
The rest of the night we wandered along the Rhine, the fireworks continued for a couple of hours. Damien had another Bratwurst and we got chatting to a German couple who were setting off ‘baby’ fireworks they bought at a toy shop, as she was scared of the real ones too! They told us the big ones are illegal in Germany too, but people can get them from Russia or Poland quite easily.
we slept in. After breakfast at the same bakery as yesterday, where they had some cinnamon doughnut type things with raisins in them. We had planned to go to the Chocolate Factory in town which Christine was excited about, but sadly this was closed for New Year. Instead we wandered through the town, took a few photos of things we not photographed. We were headed to the Rudolfplatz area which has bars and restaurants. We chose a nice bar called Hooters to have a few beers at. Although we were a bit early, and had to wait an hour before they opened! This is the 4th Hooters Bar we have been to this year, ahhh, good times. We will have to try and beat that next year! On the way back we headed to the Vietnamese restaurant again, but it was closed. We ended up having Thai up the road. The waiter was again very friendly, and kee
n to find out about Australia as he was headed Down Under next year. After giving him a list of things to see and do he was very happy and gave us some Thai keyrings and free Cocktails. A few more beers at the hotel while we tidied up a bit and got ready to head out for the night.We weren’t really sure what we were doing for New Year but headed down to the old town. We ended up in a beer hall, which was great. More like we had imagined a beer hall to be, crowded, people dancing and singing to German music, although still small beers!
At about 11.45 we headed down to the Rhine River, via the bottle shop, to watch the fireworks. As we stepped out of the beer hall it started snowing, was really amazing. The fireworks were crazy! Not like in Australia, where its done professionally. There were thousands of people along both sides of the river, and everyone brings there own fireworks to set off. They set them up in the gardens or just on the footpath. The scene was insane, smoke filled the air and fireworks being launched less than a meter from people. Some of them would fly off at angles hitting the buildings or others were going straight up but falling before they had finished exploding. There was no countdown to the New Year, which really didn’t matter, as I can’t count backwards in German anyway!
The rest of the night we wandered along the Rhine, the fireworks continued for a couple of hours. Damien had another Bratwurst and we got chatting to a German couple who were setting off ‘baby’ fireworks they bought at a toy shop, as she was scared of the real ones too! They told us the big ones are illegal in Germany too, but people can get them from Russia or Poland quite easily.
It was a crazy night, different to any other NYE we have experienced, we had a great night!
New Years Day – Happy 2010
After four hours sleep we were up, amazingly sober and no hangover! We had an early flight to catch. The train on the way to the airport was interesting, most people were heading
home from new years parties, rather than heading out for the day. While we were a bit delayed getting tickets on the trains it was no major drama, we were at the airport in time.
We were back in London around midday and took about an hour on the bus to get home. We were then told our room had been booked for an extra night by accident, didn’t really matter they put us in a share room for the night, but annoyingly still charged us!
We went for a walk New Years Day in Hyde Park, rested and then headed to bed pretty early.
home from new years parties, rather than heading out for the day. While we were a bit delayed getting tickets on the trains it was no major drama, we were at the airport in time.We were back in London around midday and took about an hour on the bus to get home. We were then told our room had been booked for an extra night by accident, didn’t really matter they put us in a share room for the night, but annoyingly still charged us!
We went for a walk New Years Day in Hyde Park, rested and then headed to bed pretty early.
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