Cologne

 After a peaceful nights sleep docked in Cologne, we finally got to see the city in daylight from the ship. We were parked near one of the main bridges that cross the Rhine and considering the traffic that goes across this bridge constantly, we never heard anything. That is testament to the quality of the accommodation onboard.

After breakfast we boarded buses for tours of the city and the Schloss Augustusburg palace. Our guide from Venezuela, came to Germany to learn English and had to learn German as well. Makes perfect sense! He was very knowledgeable about the city and gave us an excellent guide to the city and surroundings. One of our travel companions, had not been feeling well and wasn't up to the walk so stayed on the bus. Arriving at the palace he handed over to the palace guide who also gave us a detailed insight to the palace and its history. We were told that photographs were not allowed except in certain areas and asked to please respect that. A couple of Germans were added to our group and immediately started taking photographs. The guide told them no photos please, again.

This palace pales into insignificance compared to the winter palace in St Petersberg. You could fit this palace in the grand ballroom in the winter palace. It is being restored constantly  and of particular interest is the leather wallpaper panels. We were allowed to take photographs in the main entrance, and the stucco pillars and motifs on the walls showed perfect symmetry. For a smaller entrance, it seemed very cluttered in my opinion but at the time this would have been regarded as elegant. a few more rooms and view from the balcony and we were lead down through the servants halls to the ground floor. In the meantime, our German friend had been taking photographs  and our guide was getting very frustrated with him. As she led others out he once again took his camera out but a few of us stayed back and told him "no!" and stood in front of him when he tried to take a photo. He eventually got the hint.

After the palace tour we had a bit of free time in the town of Bruhl and Ann
and I walked through the mall for look around. We found a cake shop that sold Berliner buns so thought we would try one. To be honest the Aussie version was a bit better. With our time here over we boarded the bus for a trip back to the ship for lunch and the afternoons was ours to explore Cologne.

After lunch it was back on the bus and on our way to the city to see the cathedral. One can only see so many cathedrals and palaces, but this cathedral is something else! This particular cathedral took 632 years to complete and surprisingly survived the war relatively unscathed. The maintenance and restoration work on the stonework is ongoing, and the blackish appearance is due to the limestone and years of smoke and exhaust fumes from the city. 

After the cathedral I was keen to see the railway station, but google had different ideas so we settled for a walk to the Lindt chocolate factory and museum instead. It only took about 15 minutes to walk to the chocolate factory once google figured out which way we were going. The tour of the museum and factory was well worth the money. Of course some samples were included in the price, and the process of refining the chocolate was very interesting. They also had a small section devoted to a tropical rain forest environment, and a museum of Incan and Mayan artifacts. We spent about 1 1/2 hours there and thought we would treat our friends who were unable to walk the distance  to some choccys. 

We left the chocolate factory about $100 poorer and 10kg heavier, and walked across the bridge to the ship. One thing that fascinated me from my first view of Cologne was 3 buildings overhanging the river bank. The walk gave me the perfect opportunity to see this engineering marvel, as well as the bridge. There is one thing the Germans do well and that is engineering!

Back on the ship and we set sail for our final port, Amsterdam. Tonight we also have a farewell dinner and party afterwards. It was a bit sad to think we are nearing the end of our trip. The night was spent dancing with our friends and some staff, and even though my knees were feeling the effects we still managed to rock n roll the night away. 

We are on our way to Amsterdam now, and after visiting some of Ann's ancestral home regions, I am finally getting to one of my ancestral home regions. 

Day 16 Amsterdam