Mon 25/11/2019 – Thur 28/11/2019

Stay: AirBnB Rosrath

Temp: 1 – 6

We left the Rhine late on Monday, checking out at midday and the rest of the day was taken up with driving, shopping and settling into our next stay at Rosrath about 20 minutes outside of Koln.

Tuesday morning we were up and into Koln, the day was grey and chilly but the promise of Christmas markets beckoned, there are six good ones in Koln I have read and they just opened on the 22nd.

We drove in and parked just off Siegburger Straße under the Severinbruck Bundestrasse bridge for €4 per day.

We walked over the bridge and straight into the…

1st Market – the Harbour market, on the Rhine and in the grounds of the Chocolate Museum nearby which we hoping to get to later. The market had just open though so there were only a few stalls operating.

We bought some hot roasted chestnuts – Maroni; my first ever try and they were delicious. We also found a small cooking cod over flames which smelt amazing!

Continuing onward we walk along the Rhine heading to the Cathedral who’s imposing outline dominates the Koln skyline. As we walk we take in the architecture and structures that make up the city of Koln

We come to the 2nd market – Cathedral market but skip past to see the Cathedral.

It’s Gothic, dark and so big it’s difficult to capture close up. Inside is a vast space that is awe inspiring in it’s beauty and reverential and grand on a scale you can only imagine.

The Cathedral markets with approx. 150 stalls are also grand, bustling and busy. We ended up returning here later in the day just to take photos of the lights. So charming and whimsical, I’ll start with those.

The market stalls are filled with handmade products, Christmas decorations both glass and wooden, candles, jewellery, beanies and gloves and lots of food which is what Rob and I were most interested in, however I did manage to buy a few small gifts too!

The food was amazing, German potato pancakes, bratwurst and other sausage, waffles, strudel and Gluhwein of course! I’m hooked – Christmas in July at our place next year and I promise to make some!

Rob and I share the potato pancakes and bratwurst before moving on.

The 3rd Christmas market – Heinzelmannchen or Old Market has an ice rink a carousel and is just near the local Rathaus (town hall). So named for the little folk Heinzelmannchen of the Cologne legend that used to help with housework until some silly housewives tried to catch them, so they stopped as I recall from my childhood books!

The 4th market – Angels or Neumarkt is the original Christmas market.

A big day due to a second go round for night photos of the lights, we walked over 14 km!

Wednesday 27/11/19

Today we planned to visit the Chocolate Museum and the other two markets so another busy day.

The chocolate museum has several levels and provides information on the history, growth, cultivation and economic cycle of the cacao product and how chocolate has informed history and entered our culture. The museum also has a fully functional Lindt chocolate manufacturing plant so that you see all the steps in the process and you can even make you own special bar if chocolate. Plus they give you a few samples along the way. Yum!

The history is fascinating and we really enjoy it. There are a few school groups in too we could see the kids enjoying it too. Who wouldn’t enjoy a chocolate experience!

Next up we were off in search of the remaining two markets.

Market number 5 – Rudolfplatz in the city has a “Village of St Nicholas” Everything you could want for Christmas is here! The reindeer above the entrance moves and sings and as Rob and I munched through a stick of meat we watched a little girl sway and clap along with him. Just gorgeous and the pork was good too.

Market number 6 – Stadtgarten (city garden). It took us a while to find so we took some pictures along our walk and it was dark and drizzly by the time we found it so we grabbed a hot drink and sat under shelter until the rain passed. We ended up chatting to a lady who spoke English because her husband was from Oxford which was nice!

As we walked back over the bridge tired after another big day, about 14 km’s again, I took a few last photos of the city. We really enjoyed our visit to Koln (Cologne), a city well worth a visit.

Next stop Netherlands and Amsterdam.