Day 4 of 18: Cologne, Germany

We docked this morning (Thursday) north of Cologne (Köln), Germany's 4th largest city. After a short bus transfer, we met our guide Henrik and began a walking tour in Old Town Cologne. The highlight of the tour was visiting the Cologne Cathdral, the dominant feature of the city's skyline. It is Germany’s largest cathedral and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

The Cologne Cathedral is Germany's most visited landmark, attracting an average of 20,000 people a day. At 515 ft, the cathedral is the tallest twin-spired church in the world, the second tallest church in Europe, and the third tallest church of any kind in the world.

Construction of Cologne Cathedral began in 1248 but was halted around 1560, unfinished. Despite repeated attempts to complete the construction, the project was not properly funded until the 1840s and was finally completed in 1880, following the original detailed 13th-century Medieval design plan.

The largest Gothic cathedral in Northern Europe, this magnificent church boasts two soaring spires that give the cathedral the largest façade of any church in the world. Inside, most of its beautiful stained-glass windows survived the Allied bombings that ravaged the city and the rest of Germany during World War II. Behind the high altar is a large gold tomb, the Shrine of the Three Kings, believed to contain the bones of the Three Wise Men.

Our guide shared the Roman and medieval history of Cologne as we followed the city’s preserved historic street patterns, shopping areas and old town square. Here's Keith standing by the top of an old Roman tower whose base was 15 feet below the current city street.

Brass plates in the sidewalks served as useful city maps along the way. Additional brass plates memorialized Holocaust victims by marking where they had once lived, in this city that today enjoys a flourishing Jewish community. 

Keith and I chose to walk back to the ship, enjoying city views along the Rhine. 

After lunch, I investigated public swimming locations and selected nearby Lentpark. They have an indoor 25-meter pool, both indoor and outdoor water fountains and slides for the kids, and the exciting highlight for me, a 50-meter long, 2.6-meter deep outdoor pool for lap swimming in brisk water. I enoyed a 2,100-meter swim workout for only a 5 Euro day pass.

Viking hosted a pre-dinner introduction to the crew of the Ve, along with a champagne toast. We also enjoyed a local Kölsch beer, highly regarded in Cologne as "liquid bread." Our second toast of the evening was to Saint Peter the Martyr, the patron saint of Kölsch beer.

Tonight the ship continues along the Rhine, docking in the morning in Koblenz to start the journey through the rocky Rhine Valley, dotted with castles and vineyards betwen Koblenz and Mainz.