189. Europe Bicycle Trip--The Cathedral of Cologne (Koln)

After a short cycle into the city of Cologne I could see the spires of the Cologne Cathedral (Kolner Dom). It is a Roman Catholic Church and the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne. it is a renowned monument of Gothic architecture and has been a World Heritage Site since 1996. It is Germany's most visited landmark, attracting an average of 20,000 people a day. I was here at about 8 am in the morning and there were very few tourists. I only took photos of the outside of the church and did not enter as there was no safe place close by to lock my bicycle.

Construction of the Cathedral started in 1248 and was stopped in 1473 leaving it unfinished. Work was started again in the 19th century and completed from the original plan. I was approaching from the back of the church.

I had to cycle up an elevated pathway while pedestrians had to climb the stairs.

The back of the cathedral

The side of the cathedral

The front of the cathedral. The cathedral is 144.5 meters (474 feet) long, 86.5 m (284 ft) wide and its towers are about 157m (515 ft) tall. The cathedral is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe.

A closer view--The medieval builders had planned this grand structure to house parts of the relics of the Three Kings (now returned to Milan) and fit its role as a place of worship for the Holy Roman Emperor.

Close up of front top section--the whole building does not fit into a photo from my camera!

Close up of front bottom section--the cathedral suffered 14 hits by aerial bombs during WWII. It did not collapse but remained standing in an otherwise flattened city. Allied aircraft pilots used the twin spires as recognizable landmarks in the later years of the war. Repairs were completed in 1956.

Silver in photo to show size perspective--Maintenance work is constantly being done and the church is almost never free of some scaffolding

One of the ornate front doors

The decorative work and sculptures leave one with a feeling of awesomeness.

Statue after statue

Biblical depictions

What works of art!

Close up

I was trying to imagine all the hard work put into these.

Madonna and Child

Every doorway was surrounded.

Every statue was different from the others.

Endless

Outside the cathedral square was this plaque--Model of the finial on top of the Cathedral towers in original size.  Symbol of the Cathedral's completion in 1880.

Finial --9.5 m high and 4.6 m wide

188. Europe Bicycle Trip---Day 65--Cycling into Koln (Cologne)

Today was Day 65. I felt much better this morning after a good pasta supper in the restaurant of Camping Berger last night. Just as I got everything packed, a light drizzle started but did not get worse so I started. I was told by someone yesterday that I shouldn't miss seeing the Cathedral of Cologne so that was my first destination and it was only about 5 km away.

There are about 5 bridges crossing the Rhine in the area of Cologne. This is the Rodenkirchener Brucke. There is a very classy RED restaurant by the bridge and in the water.

This is the Sud Brucke (South Bridge)which is a freight bypass bridge

The old land supports of the Sud Brucke

Sud Bridge closeup

I was starting to get into the city of Koln (Cologne) cycling on the path beside the Konrad Adenauer Ufer. Cologne (Koln in German) is Germany's 4th biggest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich). It has more than 10 million inhabitants. The city is located on both sides of the river. It was founded in the 1st century AD. During the Middle Ages, it flourished as an important trade route between east and west Europe. It was one of the most heavily bombed cities in Germany during WW11. The bombing reduced the population by 95% and destroyed almost the entire city. Rebuilding has resulted in a mixed and unique looking city. The city has more than 30 museums.

A row of pale yellow dwellings

This building gave me the creeps!

Sign for the Cologne Marina

The marina is a body of water separated from the main Rhine.

I wish I knew the meaning of this gigantic cactus.

An interesting statue with no plaque.

Close up

An old tower

The Deutzer Brucke

In the distance past the tour boat landing dock is the famous Hohenzollern Brucke or Love Lock Bridge. It is so named because there are millions of different kind of locks attached to the side rails by lovers. Some are inscribed with their names and other information. The keys are then thrown into the river. This bridge is at 688.5 km of the Rhine River. It is 409.19 meters long and was first built and finished in 1911. The fleeing Germans destroyed it on March 6, 1945 and it was rebuilt in 1948. It is a railroad and pedestrian bridge and 2 new rail lines were added in 1980. 1200 trains go over this bridge in one day.

Great St. Martin Church is one of twelve Romanesque churches in Cologne. Its foundations (circa 960 AD) rest on remnants of a Roman chapel, built on what was then an island in the Rhine. The church was later transformed into a Benedictine monastery. The current buildings were erected between 1150-1250. The architecture of its eastern end forms a triconch or trefoil plan, consisting of three apses around the crossing. The church was badly damaged in WW II with restoration work completed in 1985. It is used by the Monastic Fraternities of Jerusalem and is open for visits.

187. Europe Bicycle Trip--Following Carola and Michael to Camping Platz Berger--Thankfully No Flooding This Year

After passing through the Industrial Park run by Xervon the cycle path went away from the river and I ran into Carola Regel who was cycling a little way behind her husband, Michael. Carola and I struck up a conversation. They are from Bonn and cycling to Cologne and then planning to take the train back to Bonn later today. Michael is required to know some English for his work.

Michael and Carola Regel who were out for a day's bicycle ride

The Kanu or boating Club Grun Gelb has been functioning for 35 years.

A roadsign by the canoe club--I would ant to be the guy on the top!

I had not felt good this morning but I did manage to cycle 63.80 km in 4 and a half hours of riding time. So far on my trip I have cycled 2030 km. I rode with Michael and Carola up to Camping Berger and then said goodbye. It is always nice to make friends during the day and give them my card.

I set up in a little spot that I could find between all the rows and rows of trailers. It started to rain so I closed everything and covered Silver and headed inside the main office to use 2 hours of internet.

A wooden sculpture in the office.

A photo on the wall of the Rhine River and the campground in the foreground beside the river

Another photo showing the whole campground as well as land behind it all flooded a the river levels increased

The lines on the wall show the flood  levels during different years. The highest mark is 10.41 feet on January 2, 1928.

Photos showing the campground and buildings under with flood waters

I felt that part of my not feeling ell problem was that I needed some good food instead of my little camping meals so I had a meal in  the restaurant.

I felt better in the morning and got off to an early start for Day 65.  I planned to bicycle from Koln to Neuss.