Sorry for the technical difficulties, guys. I actually intended the posts on Europe to come out daily. That is, until the wiring connecting my laptop to the internet and beyond went belly up last Sunday. I don't know exactly what happened; it's enough to say I got cut off from the internet world.

It's like what people say about the best laid plans. They often go awry.

At least my internet connection's back now. So, going on to Köln...




Köln was, like much of Europe, a bit of the old and new. The place was teeming with galleries and old architecture. There were a lot of people out and about; everyone looked pretty busy.

We couldn't check out everything since we didn't have the time. We did go to the Cathedral --- or the Dom to the Germans --- though.

It was...

HUGEEEEEEEEEEE. And yes, it was big enough to warrant all the Es in that last sentence.

The Dom was so dark and dramatic. Gargoyles and other strange stone creatures littered the cathedral's eaves. The cloudy day we chose to go see it also added to the effect. For the rest of my life, I'll picture the Dom when I hear the word Gothic.

My camera couldn't quite capture how intimidating it was. The stained glass windows were also pretty grand.


I think it's great how Europeans seem to appreciate art a lot. There are accordionists, violinists, mimes, and even artists on a lot of street corners. I even saw someone playing a special Chinese instrument once.

That quality is practically non-existent where I come from. I even heard of some company trying to bulldoze one of my country's big tourist sites for profit. That's just sad.


We eventually got hungry and stopped at a bakery.




Those bread people looked like soldiers lined up for battle. I can just hear their war cry: "Death to those who would devour usssssss!" Not that I ate any of them; I needed something more filling than that.


It was a delicious sandwich. My sister's apple pie wasn't half-bad either, though we fed a lot of its fat crumbs to the fatter pigeons at our feet.




Tourists like us are probably one of the biggest reasons these pigeons can survive in large numbers.

We also did some shopping. I enjoyed going in the bookstores and attempting to decipher the German titles.

My sister and I also found some cute furry slippers.


We didn't buy them though. Because if we did, our dog (Reese) would attack them. Then he'd munch on them and get all those threads stuck in his throat. Then he'd choke. To death.

In short, we didn't buy those slippers so our dog wouldn't die horribly.

And that's about it on Köln. I'll post on the other places soon!

Sorry for the technical difficulties, guys. I actually intended the posts on Europe to come out daily. That is, until the wiring connecting my laptop to the internet and beyond went belly up last Sunday. I don't know exactly what happened; it's enough to say I got cut off from the internet world.

It's like what people say about the best laid plans. They often go awry.

At least my internet connection's back now. So, going on to Köln...




Köln was, like much of Europe, a bit of the old and new. The place was teeming with galleries and old architecture. There were a lot of people out and about; everyone looked pretty busy.

We couldn't check out everything since we didn't have the time. We did go to the Cathedral --- or the Dom to the Germans --- though.

It was...

HUGEEEEEEEEEEE. And yes, it was big enough to warrant all the Es in that last sentence.

The Dom was so dark and dramatic. Gargoyles and other strange stone creatures littered the cathedral's eaves. The cloudy day we chose to go see it also added to the effect. For the rest of my life, I'll picture the Dom when I hear the word Gothic.

My camera couldn't quite capture how intimidating it was. The stained glass windows were also pretty grand.


I think it's great how Europeans seem to appreciate art a lot. There are accordionists, violinists, mimes, and even artists on a lot of street corners. I even saw someone playing a special Chinese instrument once.

That quality is practically non-existent where I come from. I even heard of some company trying to bulldoze one of my country's big tourist sites for profit. That's just sad.


We eventually got hungry and stopped at a bakery.




Those bread people looked like soldiers lined up for battle. I can just hear their war cry: "Death to those who would devour usssssss!" Not that I ate any of them; I needed something more filling than that.


It was a delicious sandwich. My sister's apple pie wasn't half-bad either, though we fed a lot of its fat crumbs to the fatter pigeons at our feet.




Tourists like us are probably one of the biggest reasons these pigeons can survive in large numbers.

We also did some shopping. I enjoyed going in the bookstores and attempting to decipher the German titles.

My sister and I also found some cute furry slippers.


We didn't buy them though. Because if we did, our dog (Reese) would attack them. Then he'd munch on them and get all those threads stuck in his throat. Then he'd choke. To death.

In short, we didn't buy those slippers so our dog wouldn't die horribly.

And that's about it on Köln. I'll post on the other places soon!