Cologne or Köln

While John was here we also hit up the Christmas market in Cologne. 

Well, one of them anyway.  There are actually 7 Christmas markets there, spread throughout the city.  We went on a Monday, so the kids were in school instead of with us.  After visiting there, we really want to take the kids back to see it.

The major attraction in Cologne is the Cathedral. 

 

Construction was started in 1248, but was stopped in 1473, and wasn't finished until the 1800's.  It seems crazy that a cathedral would take that long to built, until you realize that Cologne Cathedral is the 3rd tallest in the world at 516 ft., and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It truly is awe-inspiring when you're standing right in front of it.  It didn't even seem real!  We kept joking that it was just bad CGI.  But it was real.  I touched it.  I went inside. 

There were a LOT of people there.  We've never seen such an international presence in any other German city that we've visited, not even Frankfurt.  They say that 20,000 people visit the cathedral on average each day, and I don't doubt it.

There are a lot of people entombed in this cathedral - many archbishops and others - but I don't know an exact number.  Each one has a.....I don't know what to call it.....a mini-chapel?  Shrine?  Whatever, they were interesting.

The most important treasure inside the cathedral is the Sarcophagus of the Magi, a large golden reliquary (dating to around 1200) containing 3 gold-crowned skulls said to be the remains of the 3 wisemen (hey, I don't make this stuff up).  The magnificence of the cathedral is due, in part, to the fact that they wanted a cathedral worthy of housing this treasure.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that the second highlight of Cologne for me was food :)  Our noses stumbled upon this.

Schupfnudeln, or potato noodles served with sourkraut, crème fraiche, and fresh herbs.  My tastes buds were dancing!  Seriously, I can't even describe how good this was, but this was basically what we sounded like when we were eating it.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Joe's brother John came to visit us again, and this time he brought his daughter Hannah.  I told him that with this second trip, he has officially made it an annual event to come visit us at Christmas, and he is practically contractually obligated to come again next year.  I am not afraid to sue if he doesn't fulfill his commitments ;)

Anyway, the first Christmas market we hit up this year was in Rothenburg.  We've been wanting to go there for a while, so it was a treat for us.  It wasn't a huge market, but it was really the town we wanted to see anyway.....and to get a mug to add to our collection ;)  Some interesting facts about Rothenburg.  It is probably the best preserved Medieval town in German, and was hailed by the Nazis as the quintessential German town.  Filming was done here for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Harry Potter (the last two movies).

Galgentor (Gallows Gate) - I think there are like 42 towers around the city. Public executions took place outside this tower, hence the name.

 Climbing up onto the town walls (built in the 13th century).  One of the few places in Germany that still has its city walls.

 The perfectly intact walls (well, perfectly intact after repairs were made after WWII) have a covered walk way and circle the entire city. You can walk the entire perimeter, and it's about 3 kilometers, but we just went up for a quick look.

 Then we headed into the city center

The real highlight for me was that when I was doing my research (as I always do before we visit a new town), I found out that during the Christmas season they open up the bell tower of the Rathaus (Town Hall - 1250) to visitors.   

 It was a bit of a climb, and the higher up the stairs you go, the narrower and steeper they get, until the very end is more like a ladder, and my shoulders were touching the walls on both sides.  The top of the tower is very small, and only 20 people are allowed up there, although, I was thinking I was sure glad that there was only 6 people when we went up ;)

 The view.  Oh my goodness, I loved it!

 As soon as Madelyn reached the top and looked out, she freaked (totally scared of heights), and Joe had to take her back down.  But Alex kept saying over and over again, "It's so beautiful!"

I read that the artists that worked on Disney's "Pinocchio" were inspired by this city.  It really was quite fairytale-like. What do you think?

From Pinocchio

We also visited St. Jakob's Church (1311)

The most interesting thing inside the church was the Holy Blood Altarpiece, which was beautifully carved (and these pictures really don't do it justice) between 1499-1505.  At the top of the altar, there is a rock crystal capsule which is said to hold a small sample of Christ's blood.....not sure how they got that ;)

Once again, I've visited a beautiful city, and all I can think is, "I've got to go back!"  There were definitely some city highlights that we missed seeing.

Last but not least, my favorite street performers here are always the ones who play the accordion - when I hear that, I have to stop for a listen.  These particular musicians were Russian.  Enjoy.

I almost forgot!  We all got crepes, and Hannah got an Amaretto one.  She didn't realize that Amaretto was alcohol, she just knew she liked Amaretto ice cream, hahaha.  One bite, and her lips were totally tingly.  She threw the rest away, but we teased her the rest of the time about crepes being the gate-way drug ;)

So Behind

I'm going to play catch-up here, and post everything that we were up to in October and November.

Cora was in the high school production of Letters to Sala.

 Lot's of hard work, fun with friends, and a director that doesn't know how to use his "inside voice".  I saw a lot of improvement, and I was very proud of her.  She felt like the pros outweighed the cons, and decided to be a part of the musical "The Little Mermaid", which will be a lot more work, more fun, and probably more yelling. 

For Halloween we recycled costumes....again....sort of.

 

 Cora was a Greek goddess, Joseph a zombie, Madelyn a bunny, and Alex a knight?  I went as Rapunzel, and it took me many hours to make this wig out of yarn.

It. Was. Heavy.  My neck and back hurt by the end of the night.  But totally worth it :)

Separate from our church's Trunk-or-Treat, the youth decided to have a self-reliance costume contest.  That means that they had to make their own costumes from things they found around the house.  Cora was a nerd and Joseph was a bunch of grapes - both last minute costumes.  But I was really surprised by how creative some of the costumes were, and how much work they put into them!

One of the girls came as a pregnant lady.  I asked her who she was supposed to be, and she said, "My mom.".  I said, "What are you implying about your mom."  She said, "She's pregnant."  That should have been fairly obvious, but I had no idea that her mom was pregnant.  It was pretty funny.

 

Cora had a Harry Potter marathon party.  Specifically because one of her best friends here had never seen any of the movies, so obviously that needed to be remedied. It sounds like just what it was - a little over 19 hours, split up over a Friday and Saturday, watching one movie after another.  It was long.  It was epic. 

 

A friend let us borrow some decorations, and we had LOTS of food and treats.

Honestly, I'm not entirely sure how much of the movies they actually saw.  There was a lot of talking, tasting of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and a hair braiding train?

 Kids these days ;)  I think one of the highlights for everyone was the souvenir they came away with.

 

This amazing drawing was done by one of the girls who came.  Almost everyone who came is in the picture (some kids came and went), and she did a great job of capturing everyone's personalities.  We made a copy for everyone, and then they sat around and colored them during one of the movies.

Fall seemed especially beautiful to me this year.  I go walking with my friend Mindy every Monday, and we have a beautiful route we take.

And let's not forget that Joseph turned 13 - official teenager! 

He's not quite as tall as me yet, but he's getting closer every day.  I keep telling him that once he outgrows me he's obligated to give me piggy back rides.  For some reason, I don't think he's taking me seriously. 

Joseph reads a lot, all the time - which is probably why Language Arts is his favorite subject in school.  Oh, and he recently told me he wants to be an author when he grows up.  It would be very interesting to be inside his brain for a day.  He makes random comments that catch people off guard.  We just laugh.  He has a great sense of humor.  He has been known to cry at movies.  He eats a lot, all the time.  He grows out of shoes and clothes faster than I can afford to buy him new ones.  He's been working on his organizational skills.  Overall, he's a pretty happy and easy-going kid, and we love him a lot.