Hi folks!
During my last winter break, I spent about 10 days in Germany and about a week in Cologne as I have a friend there. It's funny that I had never met that friend before visiting her in Germany. A mutual friend of the two of us in Vietnam introduced us to each other as we are both overseas students.
At first, I only planned to have a short trip, and I contacted her to ask for some recommendations. However, she was so kind that she invited me to stay at her house in Cologne right away. I was worried that I might disturb her vacation and she was just being polite , but her warm words had convinced me to go there. I'm happy that I went on that trip because we have become best friends after my stay in Germany.
I took a 7-hour train to Cologne and met my friend at the station. She welcomed me with a cup of warm milk tea, which I really love, and showed me around the city.
Cologne is an old city that is located on the Rhine river of western Germany. The city used to be built as a Roman provincial capital, that's why most of the city's attractions are Roman remains (retrieved from https://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/cologne-d-nw-col.htm).
This is the Hohenzollern Bridge and the Cologne Cathedral on the Rhine river. These are two of the most iconic architecture in Cologne. Besides, the cathedral is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site (retrieved from https://www.aesu.com/aesu-world-travel/the-history-of-cologne-cathedral/). The cathedral is located right next to the train station, which makes it very convenient to visit.
Hohenzollern is also called "Cologne's Love Locks bridge" as the bridge is full of padlocks from couples. It is estimated that there are more than 340,000 of padlocks are currently on this 409m-long bridge, and these padlocks have added more than 15 tons of weight to the bridge (retrieved from http://www.lovelockbridge.cologne/index.html ).
If you go to Cologne on Christmas, you can also join in a Christmas market near the cathedral. In fact, Cologne's Christmas market is one of the most magical markets in Europe (retrieved from https://www.eurostar.com/rw-en/city-breaks/christmas-markets/cologne).
Food that we had in the Christmas market. I wish I had more photos to share but I was so tired on that day that I didn't take many.
We also had a day trip to Monschau - a small village near Cologne.
Pretty and tranquill Monschau in the early morning. The town is packed with old vibrant timber houses.
The scenery and morning sunlight was a perfect combination. It looks like a movie's scene.
A Christmas vibe pic taken in front of the famous Rotes Haus in Monschau. This used to be the house of a wealthy local in Monschau, and it is famous for its history and interior (retrieved from https://rotes-haus-monschau.de/en/frontpage/).
Normally, it is supposed to take 5 hour to fully discover the village. However, as the weather was freezing, we gave up and came home after about 2 hours and a half. We tried to warm up with some hot drinks but it didn't help much. I'll definitely revisit this place in a warmer season to finish the trail.
Although I stayed at my friend's house for almost a week, we didn't go out much. We wanted to spend time relaxing instead of having a jam-packed trip, plus most of the stores closed during Christmas time. We spent time at home cooking and watching TV shows together. Sometimes, we went out for a little walk after having a big meal.
A cute photo taken in the neighbourhood while we were walking.
A gorgeous sunrise sky was captured while we were waiting for the bus.
I was so sad when I had to come back home. This is one of the greatest trips that I've ever had. The scenery wasn't the most stunning I've seen, but I have a new best friend and we had a great time together. We share many common things in interest as well as personality. It's great to have a friend while being far from home.
That's all for today.
Thank you and see you next time.