Cologne Cathedral

Ok, I admit it: I showed up in Cologne knowing absolutely nothing about the city.  I'm such a relaxed traveller these days that I tend to arrive in cities without a clue of what I'm going to be doing there, figuring that I'll wander about and find some interesting things.  Well.  When we arrived in Cologne, we went from the S-bahn (main railway) to the U-bahn (local subway) and, with only a glance outside, I saw one of the most impressive things I've seen in my entire life. "Holy crap!" I said to Sam, "look at that!".  I was, of course, looking at the Cologne Cathedral.

Cologne Cathedral at night

If you're a seasoned traveller, especially to Europe, you probably think you've seen churches.  But let me tell you - you haven't seen anything until you've seen this.  Cologne Cathedral is the largest Gothic church in Europe, standing at 157 metres tall (as a point of comparison, Sydney Harbour Bridge is 134 metres from the water to the top of the bridge).  None of my photos do it justice - it is so huge that it is impossible to get it all in one photo.

The interior - incredibly high ceiling

The Cathedral is covered in medieval carvings and relics of incredible detail, even right at the top.  It started being built in 1248 and took a mere 632 years to complete.  632 years!  Even in 1880, being a craftsman at the top of that building must have been incredibly scary. We climbed the 533 step spiral staircase to the top belfry, and I can tell you that my legs were jiggling.  But this thing is solid.  It was hit by aerial bombs 70 times during WWII, but never collapsed.

Huge stained-glass windows

Inside the cathedral is equally impressive (but perhaps not so fear-inducing).  It is filled with artworks, statues, a crypt and very, very tall stained-glass windows.

So much detail - even at the very top

Cologne itself is a bigger city than I expected, a bit arty, very pretty, well worth a visit.  And the Cathedral, of course, is absolutely breathtaking.