Last day in Cologne

Last day in Germany

My third day in Germany was the quietest out of the three I spent days I spent there. After spending all of Friday and Saturday getting to know both Cologne and Bonn and having spent the afternoon and evening at Rhin Festival, it was time to spend a day relaxing.

That morning I woke up on the floor. What had been a blow up mattress the few days before, had turned into a flat, airless piece of plastic and my back was in agony. But I got over it, and we got ready and set off at midday.

Football in Cologne

From the window of Jose's apartment, you can see the Cologne football stadium, the Rheinenergie Stadion and we looked on the internet to see if there was a match that afternoon. By the way, Cologne were promoted to the first division in Germany on that same day. I wanted to go and watch a match there, but there wasn't a single ticket left on sale and I didn't want to pay double for a second hand ticket to watch a second division game. What we did was a tour of the stadium and experienced the atmosphere in the stadium when the fans were arriving to watch the game. I have to say that the stereotypes of Germany were definitely true, as every five metres there were vendors selling sausages and huge glasses of beer. The stadium was one of the locations for the 2006 World Cup that Germany hosted, so it was very well kept and looked brand new. Cologne were playing against St. Pauli and I will never forget seeing a group of about 100 fans of the opposition that the police had ushered into the stadium a good while before kick-off (yes, there are also super football fans in Germany).

The stadium is surrounded by lots of green areas and an hour before the match had started, there were a few people sat waiting for the game to start and sunbathing (they were already drunk). We ate at one the hot dog stands that was close by. The prices were similar to what you would pay in Spain, from 2€ to 3. 50€, depending on the size and the type of 'wurst' (sausage) that you order. Other things that they sold included potatoes, that were either fried or grilled.

Vermouth of Germany

As the game started, we didn't want to stand there waiting for it to finish and only being able to hear the goals, so we went to downtown to have a walk around. We walked through one of the city parks, the Rheinpark, near the river. Soon we got to the streets in the city centre, near the Hansaring station, where we met with a couple of Jose's friends. We enjoyed a beer in the street on a Sunday afternoon, next to one of the many kiosks in the city. There was a small park on the other side of the street that was full of young Germans and Erasmus students drinking beer. Another thing that caught my attention and that you should know, is that if you return your bottle to a kiosk, no matter which one, they will give you some money in return. It's a very good way to recycle, even if you don't do it, there are always people who make a living by looking for them and exchanging them even if it only for 20 cents per bottle. It may seem a ridiculous price, but where we took our beer bottles back, there were two people collecting bottles who had shopping carts piled high with them. This wouldn't make much sense in Spain, since it is forbidden to drink alcohol in the street and so it wouldn't work.

After telling the guys about the Rheinfestival, Jose and I went for a final walk around the centre of Cologne. We went to see the Church of St. Martin, which we hadn't seen up until now, but you can always see it from far away. Strolling along the river, we also saw two spectacular buildings that were very modern apartment blocks and apparently were also very expensive. We took the "U" (metro) from Heumarkt when night came and went directly home so I could pack my stuff and get ready to leave the next morning to get the train to Paris. And once I got to France, I got a Blabla car from Plaza Italia to Saint Nazaire, where I am staying for another two months before returning to Spain.

Back to Saint Nazaire

Cologne I liked a lot, it isn't anything like Paris or other Spanish cities that I have visited that have very old and well-preserved historical centres. Cologne, like most of Germany, suffered the full consequences of World War II, with lasting damage from the bombs that destroyed the heart of the city. But still, even though everything seemed new and most of the buildings didn't have much history, there is lots to see there and I'm really looking froward to going back.

No sleeping on trains

I have a story to tell from the way home that taught me that it is not a good idea to sleep on trains.

When I was on the train to from Cologne to Paris, I decided to get some sleep and set the alarm to wake me a little before we arrived in Paris. I fell asleep shortly after leaving Cologne and I woke up totally disoriented somewhere in Europe, in a station that looked like one in Paris. Looking out the window, I thought we had already arrived in Gare du Nord (I was clearly affected by the lack of sleep), so I grabbed my luggage and got off the train. I heard people speaking French, so I walked quickly off the platform and headed for the exit, and luckily found a clock in the station. It was definitely too early to have arrived in Paris so I woke myself up and asked a man who was passing by if we were in Paris... "Nous sommes à Bruxelles" which means "We are in Brussels"... And just as I was absorbing what I had just heard I heard a whistle indicating the train was leaving again... so I ran like a madman to the door and pressed the button frantically until it opened. Once it started moving, the ticket-man came to me and asked for my ticket and luckily I still had it and didn't throw it away when I first got on the train in Cologne. Seconds later I would have been stranded in Brussels with no money to buy another ticket. So after this little scare, I was no longer tired and now I know not to fall asleep on a train again.

I waited in the Plaza of Italy in Paris for Robert, who was the driver of the car that I had reserved with BlaBlaCar. We then set off on the five-hour drive back to Saint Nazaire, stopping every few minutes to pick someone up or drop someone off (which is bad thing about using BlablaCar). I arrived safely at my residence, I had dinner, I watched a movie and chilled out.

All in all, the trip was an unforgettable experience and it was one of the best trips I had ever taken. I encourage all of you to read my blog, visit Paris, the city of lights and of course Cologne, one of the many beer capitals of the world.

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