The students took a day trip to the neighboring city of Cologne and experienced a new way of city life. Cologne is a larger city compared to Bonn and therefore has more people and tourism. The students woke up early in the morning and set off to the wonderful city. Despite the wind and the chills, the students were led on a walking tour around the city. With over 1 million inhabitants, Cologne is the fourth biggest city in Germany and the biggest city in North Rhine-Westphalia. It is also the oldest major city in Germany at about 2,000 years of age. The students then discovered that the central station is located on top of an ancient roman city. Who knew? We were able to go under the main area and look at the recently excavated buildings. It has been turned into a parking lot.
Back on the surface, we continued our city tour and learned about the famous alcoholic drink made in Cologne, “Eau de Cologne”. Located in house 4711, 300 years ago, an Italian settled there and created what he called “Miraculous Water;” it contained 85% pure alcohol. In that time, people would take the drink in drops as a medicine for headaches or toothaches. The streets of Cologne and many parts of Europe did not have a good sewage system and the streets were covered in human feces. People would take “Miraculous Water” (aka “Eau de Cologne”) and dab it under their noses in order to hide the smell.
After the city tour, the students took a train to Cologne Ossendorf and had a guided tour of MMC Studios. Much like the studios in Los Angeles (but smaller), MMC studios consisted of sound stages,television studios, television sets, and much more. The students received an inside look on how Germans make films and the differences between Germany and the United States. Radio and television production studios of the largest German broadcasting station, WDR, are in Cologne. The inauguration of the WDR in 1956 marks the beginning of history as a media metropolis.
Back in the city center, the roman excavations throughout Cologne, halted new construction, however, that didn’t stop them from building up and up. And up we went: the students clambered up the largest chapel in Cologne, Der Kölner Dom. It is one of the world’s largest churches and is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe. For four years, (1880-1884) the cathedral was the tallest structure in the world until the completion of the Washington Monument. The gothic style building showed signs of wear but miraculously it survived the bombings of WWII, unlike the rest of the city. An elevator took us to the top of the cathedral and we were able to walk on the scaffolding placed around the building for reconstruction. We ended up far above the catholic alter looking down on the ceremony below. We explored the height of the church and experienced the largest bell in all of Germany. What a wonderful sight!
After a long day in the city, the students hopped on a train and headed back to our little town of Bonn, ready for another school day ahead.
Written by: Kate Remsen
