Köln, Deutschland
10/09/2022
As you may recall, I have made friends with many of the great people I met during my exchange in Prague. One thing that we aim for is to have regular meetups – or reunions – around the world.
This time we decided to meet in Cologne, the city where Maisam lives and studied.
I took a (very!) early morning train from Zurich but was able to get some sleep during the ride. I had to switch trains once and my friend Monika and her sister Daniela joined me for the section from then on. A couple of hours later, we arrived and met up with Maisam at the central station. A little later, Anna from the Netherlands joined. Since the weather was terrible, we decided to have some lunch together. Our choice was Hänneschen und die Pfeffermühle, a German restaurant at Heumarkt square. It was great seeing everyone and we enjoyed catching up.
Having eaten, we brought our luggage to the hotel and then wanted to discover the city a little. Maisam was kind enough to show us around. Our hotel was near Mediapark, so we came past Kölnturm and the more modern part of the city.
The walk took us through the north-western parts of the city and we even visited Zentralmoschee, a large mosque in Köln Ehrenfeld. I have only been to a few mosques in the past so it was an insightful experience, especially with Maisam explaining the meaning behind certain symbols and particularities.
Next up we stopped at some shops for me to try and find some boots that were better suited to the weather. I did find some, but ended up ordering them online, thus not immediately solving the problem of my wet shoes. Subsequently, we took the tram to Maisam’s place with a stop at the supermarket to get some snacks and good wine for the evening. Maisam cooked a typical Pakistani dish and we had some wine and good talks. After dinner we went to check out the party district, though a few of us (me included) were tired and returned to the hotel soon after.
11/09/2022
The next morning, we met up for brunch at Café Goldjunge. The food was wonderful and I can thoroughly recommend the place should you be staying in Cologne sometime in the future .
We followed the brunch up with a walk through Innerer Grüngürtel, a nearby park. Moreover, we spent over an hour trying to find a supposedly famous graffiti road but gave up eventually and returned to the area near central station instead.
By that time, the sun had finally come through entirely, so we crossed Hohenzollernbrücke and sat down at Rheinpromenade Köln-Deutz on shore of the Rhine. After a while of enjoying the weather & company it was time to return home, so we bid each other farewell and boarded our respective trains.
Reflecting on the joint weekend, I am excited that everyone made it work and am looking forward to next time!
Bis bald!