Old Town/Altstadt, Cologne

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Favorite thing: Some friend who been in the past there recommend me a officiel Guide called Evangelos.

Easy contact www.brauhaustouren-in-koeln.de and Evangelos was fluent English and we had fun exploring the narrow lanes and getting to know about the city, people, traditions and of course the local beer called Kolsch ( hope this is the way to spell it ha,ha ...)

Have fun, B. Anderson

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Favorite thing: Living statues have become popular in many locations – in fact, wherever tourists gather – but I have hardly ever seen as many in one spot as in front of Cologne cathedral. From Roman soldiers to bronze statues, the choice is yours…

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Favorite thing: Do not expect much old town flair in Cologne. World War II has left hardly more than piles of rubble. 90% of the city centre were destroyed. What you see today has all been rebuilt after the war, few houses in their historical shape and many in post-war style. With the increasing number of Rhine cruise ships landing, the streets close to the Rhine bank have become a tourist quarter with a few traditional old pubs and many more or less tacky fast food places that cater for mass tourism.

Favorite thing: The Gereonmühlenturm - Gereon Mill Tower - dates from the middle of the 15th century, and is located on a surviving segment of the old city wall, on the Hansaring. It's a nice area of the city, with parks, playgrounds and gardens. Nearby, however, is a remember of more disturbing and violent times: a memorial to the nearly 1000 people who were killed by the Nazis here in the waning days of World War II.

Favorite thing: Eigelstein is one of Cologne's most diverse neighborhoods, and it was a sensory pleasure to wander through the streets here. It looks like a good place to have a Kölsch, too. The gate at the end of the avenue dates from the Middle Ages.

The statue in the left-side niche of the gate represents the "Kölsche Boor" or Farmer, ready to defend his city. "We may be poor, but we live well all the same," is the local slogan, and a good one at that!

Favorite thing: Konrad Adenauer (1876-1967), the "Grand Old Man" of post-way German Reconstruction, was mayor of Colgone in the 1920s. He was a good Christian Democrat, and spent much of the the Nazi Years hiding from the authorities. He served as Chancellor of the West German state from 1951 to 1964, and came to symbolize the restoration of "normality" in a society that was desperate for it.

Adenauer was a real Kolsch personality, which perhaps explains both his "moderation" AND why certain other Germans in the post-war era never really respected him. But it's very appropriate that he is remembered so fondly here, in Cologne, this Rhineland city which looks westward and which has been a bastion of "liberal Catholicism" for hundreds of years.

The Adenauer statue is in the shadows of Apostlen Church, where he was a choirboy and whose school he attended.

Favorite thing: There are just too many lovely little places to sit and *people watch* - I could do it all day! I did actually manage to get of my backside occasionally and do other stuff - like SHOPPING (but mostly window shopping as it's quite touristy and therefore expensive!) :))

Fondest memory: Being with lovely people.

Favorite thing: It''s easy to find your way in the old city part of Cologne. Here I provide you with a map (see picture please).

The most favourite things to see in the old city of Cologne:

* The Dome
* Rhineparc
* The Fach houses
* The museum
* Rhine river boat tour
* Beergardens