Köln 1

We made a long weekend trip to Cologne, or Köln recently. The Cologne Cathedral was the first thing we visited. Its renowned Gothic architecture was magnificent. 

We just admired the exterior of the cathedral at that time. It was too early for the public to visit and it was time for us to have a breakfast. We tried a cafe called Lint No 7 in the old town. My two egg breakfast plate was nice and satisfying. J had a bagel with egg and bacon. The bagel must have been hiding somewhere under the mountain of toppings.

Then we revisited the cathedral to see the interior. The first thing that caught my eye was the array of the tapestry. It is said that Peter Paul Rubens, one of the greatest Flemish painter of the Baroque period designed a series of monumental tapestries for the cathedral. He lived in Cologne in his childhood and later he created two works for the town, which he was very fond of. So, were they the 17th century tapestries by Rubens? I doubt it because the cathedral’s official website doesn’t mention anything about the tapestries. Perhaps they were replicas? 

Perhaps the most celebrated treasure in the cathedral is the Shrine of the Magi. It was created sometime between about 1190 and 1220 to house the relics of the Magi (Three Wise Men) according to legend. Well, the Shrine was placed right behind the high altar, where we were not allowed to enter. We could barely see it! 

In fact the crossing, inner choir and ambulatory were off-limits. The floor of those sections were covered with mosaic artworks that were completed in the late 19th century. I guess the cathedral don't want us to step on them. We could see the part of the pampered floor through the fence, though. I was looking for the mid-15th century altarpiece painted by the Cologne master painter Stefan Lochner. It was supposed to be set at the high alter. Later I learned it was set at the right side of the ambulatory, where I couldn't see! Because of the large off-limits, I felt the church was smaller than it looked.

There was another golden box at the transept. I was a little confused which was actually the Shrine of the Magi and needed to confirm what the Shrine looked like on the official website of the cathedral. One at the high alter was the Shrine after all, and I still don’t know what this was…

It was getting windy and cloudy outside. We escaped in the Museum Ludwig, located just at the south-east corner of the cathedral. The museum houses a large collection of 20th and 21st century art, including the third largest Picasso collection in the world. 

My favorite one there was Matisse’s still life.

The terrace of the museum was a nice view spot of the cathedral by the way. The sky got somehow cloudy and didn’t give me a chance to take a beautiful photo, though.

When we left the museum, the weather seemed better. It was a chance to climb up the cathedral tower. The cathedral is known as the tallest twin-spired (515 feet/157 meters) church in the world. We managed the 553 steps to the observation floor. No elevator, of course. The reward was lovely scenery.

Next we took a Uber to a Japanese restaurant, Tsukiji for lunch, located outside of the town center. I had an Udon noodle dish and J had Hokkaido curry. Honestly both didn't taste like authentic Japanese dishes but they were fine Asian dishes. The restaurant's atmosphere and staff were good, too. A very nice pick, J!

We explored around the area a bit and thought about having desserts.

We tried Café Konditorei Wahlen. Founded in 1911, the 4th and 5th generations of the Wahlen family are running the cafe today. Their cakes looked lovely while the ‘Granny’s house’ interior of the dining space made J feel strange.

J's choice was Schokoladen-Kirschtorte. I had Florentiner Kirschkuchen. We were both in the mood for cherries. Mine was delightful and I tasted J's a bit and it was pretty good, too. 

Hahnentor was near the cafe. The restored 13th-century gate was part of the city wall.

It was an unique aspect of Cologne that 12 Romanesque churches were densely arranged around the old town. Basilica of St Apostles was one of them.

A wine festival was going on. I didn't know it was in the middle of the Cologne Wine Week.

We stopped by the famous fragrance shop that created the original Eau de Cologne 4711. The secret formula hasn't changed since 1792. The seven main ingredients of the 4711 are lemon, bergamot and orange, lavender, rosemary, neroli and petitgrain. 

Die Maus! The cute orange mouse is a main character of a popular German children's television series, Die Sendung mit der Maus (The show with the mouse). Since 1971, the curious and clever mouse has been explaining the world in easy words. The program is produced by WDR (Westdeutscher Rundfunk) in Cologne. I believe the building next to the mouse is the building of the WDR headquarters. 

We came back to the cathedral. The afternoon sun highlighted the details of the stunning western façade. It was very crowded around the church than the early morning.

 

We walked up to Great St. Martin Church near the Rhine, one of the 12 Romanesque churches. The exterior looked impressive while the interior was furnished in a minimalist way.

To be continued…