Conky Tonkin' with The Pfeifers: A Grand Cathedral and Windmills- We Visit Cologne and Kinderjik

Arriving in Cologne

At 0400 hours we cast off the dock at Koblenz, and after waiting for some river traffic to pass that would allow us to turn the longship downstream, we were on our way to Cologne. Cologne was founded by the Romans in the first century A.D. and later flourished as a stop on one of the more important trade routes between the east and west. Cologne was one of the most heavily bombed cities during WWII which reduced the population by 95% and destroyed the entire city. The

Hiking to Kölner Dom

restoration of the city has resulted in a very mixed city landscape. Today Cologne is Germany’s fourth largest city and home to its largest cathedral, the Kölner Dom.

Kölner Dom and plaza

Statues in archway

Docking in Cologne just after breakfast around 0900, Jane and Capt. Larry were waiting in their stateroom for the announcement of the beginning of the scheduled 0915 shore excursion. No announcement came and we missed the buses. We were on our own for the day. Jane was fuming, but we could see the famed cathedral from our ship and were told that it was a 15-20 minute walk. We decided to walk and see the cathedral. Upon arriving at the cathedral, Capt. Larry began to think that we had arrived early enough that we might possibly be able to connect with our people. This is exactly what happened. Ascending to the main level or plaza that surrounds the cathedral, we were spotted by Dayne and Pam and were able to join our shore excursion.

Kölner Dom is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and is renowned for its Gothic architecture.

Another detailed archway

Construction of the cathedral began in 1248 and was halted in 1473, before finally being finished in 1880. In 1164 the Archbishop of Cologne acquired the relics of the Three Kings which have great religious significance and draw pilgrims from all over the world.

Side view of cathedral and plaza

Jane in the plaza

Inside the cathedral

The cathedral was built to house these important relics. It is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We went inside the cathedral and took some beautiful pictures and listened to some wonderful organ music while watching the clergy conduct some type of mass. We went outside and joined our guide as if we had been with the group all along. It’s all good.

Excavation of Roman wall

Along the important east-west trade route on which Cologne is situated, the Romans built a number of fortifications along the route which have become buried over time by natural deposits. One site in the city was recently discovered and excavation of the site revealed fortification ruins, a senator’s house, and a market plaza that were being dug to learn more about the Roman ways. We were

Another church on the tour

able to view this archaeological site. Our walking city tour took us past a number of medieval and Gothic churches and buildings as well as modern avant-garde structures and a refurbished river front.


The guide's recommendation

We went to a couple of hofbrau houses and our guide (who was a rather portly gentleman) recommended a couple of his favorite beers as well as some hofbrau house dishes that we were encouraged to try.

Mmmmm...Bratwurst!

We had beers here

Our tour ended and we went with Dayne and Pam to a hofbrau house/café where we had one of the local brews. We boarded our bus and returned to the ship for lunch (more food!). After lunch Dayne and Pam decided to take the bus back into the city for some shopping, but we thought that an afternoon nap would be more rewarding.

We met up with Pam and Dayne just before dinner for happy hour.

Have car, will travel

After a delightful dinner we returned to the lounge to watch two ladies play a number of pieces on the classical guitar and violin with some occasional singing. It was really a great performance, and afterwards we headed off to bed.

Noah's ark

We left Cologne just before midnight and traveled all night on our way to the Netherlands. We came to the Netherlands/German line just about breakfast time. After breakfast we attended a presentation by the program director on Dutch cheeses and Jenever, a Dutch drink distilled from juniper berries. We were able to sample the liquor as

Arriving at Kinderjik

well as various Dutch cheeses. The Jenever is drunk as a single shot, and it was not necessarily a favorite. After the presentation we had lunch with Dayne and Pam and then attended a seminar on Dutch hydrology, coastal maintenance, and water management- something this nation constantly deals with. The seminar didn’t touch on the

Kinderjik visitor's center

scientific details or dynamics of these topics, but it was interesting to see how important these issues are to the Dutch people and how they manage with so much of their country below sea level. The seminar ended at our Netherland stop, Kinderjik, where we were going to go on a walking tour of yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. Jane visited a gift shop to pick up some souvenirs and we headed back to the ship.

Lots of windmills

Well maintained windmill

At Kinderjik we saw a complex of 19 windmills, all built around 1740, which would pump water back into the ocean to keep the land from flooding. Basically, the windmills would pump water into a storage field when water levels were high, and then pump the water into rivers that led to the ocean when the river levels were low due to tidal influences. Kinderjik is an ideal spot for this water level control as it is only 2 meters

An old one

(about 7 feet) below sea level, where other locations are as much as 7 meters (~24 feet) below sea level.

Inside a windmill

Thus, the water doesn’t have to be pumped as high at Kinderjik. We were able to go into one of these windmills to see what life was like for a windmill keeper, and decided that it was very similar to a lighthouse keeper.

Power transfer with wooden gears

We toured the grounds and visited a museum/visitor’s center to get a taste of the past in this area.

Augers pump water today

After returning to the ship we made our disembarkation arrangements with the ship’s concierge and packed our bags. We would be arriving in at the Amsterdam terminus in the morning. Our last night together, we had happy hour with Dayne and Pam before our last wonderful, 5-course dinner aboard ship.

No luggage fit, Jane

After dinner we went out on deck to watch the captain take the ship through its last lock, a drop of only about 6-8 feet, before retiring for the night.