As charming as the markets in Dusseldorf were, we were slightly underwhelmed. NYC has its fair share of Christmas markets so they didn't seem all that different in Germany. Cologne, however, was pretty spectacular. Before you have even arrived into the train station, you can see the looming Cathedral and its presence is clear no matter where you are in the city. It has the largest facade of any church in the world and rivals Sagrada Familia and St. John the Divine in size.
Parental confession: Pete and I had a really fun time exploring Cologne, the markets, the spiced wine, Kolsch beer (the specialty of Cologne) and it really got us in the Christmas Spirit. Jude, however, was sick and not having the best time. Exhibit A below.
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| Poor baby |
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| Cologne Cathedral |
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Facade so large, I couldn't capture it in one image!
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The markets in Cologne were really special. Starting with the largest one at the side of the Cathedral. From here, the markets just flowed one into the next. My favorite was the one with the ice skating rink and gnome theme. We bought one souvenir mug with a butcher gnome!
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| Cathedral Towers in the background |
We headed down to the Rhine for a stroll and found another nautical themed market. Pete had a salmon sandwich, smoked to order. I had a soft pretzel and chunks of Austrian mountain cheese- a happy mama! Jude liked the pretzel, too.
We went in search of the best Kolsch beer and Pete had done his research. We stopped in two very darling breweries oozing with character.
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| Dad said no apples until you finish your beer (you cover your beer to indicate to the servers that you don't want another- otherwise they keep them coming!) |
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| Inside the cathedral. Jude must feel very at peace in churches. He had a similar incident as in Delft! |
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| Remains of the three kings are said to be buried here! |
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