Leaving Amsterdam and a Quick Visit to Köln

Greetings from Köln! And Frankfurt!

A lot has happened

Our time in Amsterdam came to an end on the 30th, and not quickly like a bandaid, but slowly, over the course of several hours. Goodbying all over the place. April left by plane first, me by train and Rowan by automobile. Though Rowan and I met up in Köln later that day.

Our last few days were just as much fun as the first few, just with the added bonus that I caught a head cold. But Ro was nice enough to share her Turkey Tail Mushroom tea with me and think I'm on the mend already.

The day after Kings Day we all felt like a low energy activity, so we packed a picnic and drove to the middle of the country (about an hour) to Barneveld where Alex's uncle lives.

He lives in a cute house, with a stable out back, two horses, some geese, and a duck or two. He is also completely surrounded by an industrial park. Just on the other side of the trees a warehouse district has crept up to his front door. The city made a deal that they would pay him now and he would leave the property to them when he died. That was when he was back in his seventies and now in his mid-nineties his property makes for an interesting juxtaposition.

He introduced us to his beautiful black horse Froukia (completely guessing spelling) and I helped finish getting her ready, fixing the bridle over her ears and cleaning her hooves with a pick, something I haven't done since horse camp in the 7th grade. I'm happy the muscle memory of how to give a horse a manicure is still there.

Alex, Stephany, Luna, Rowan, April, Alex's Uncle, and I piled into an open carriage for a jaunty ride through the industrial park, much to the hilarity of some of the truck drivers passing us on the left. But soon we traveled out of the warehouses, through a pastoral landscape into a forested park with sand paths for Ms. Froukia to pull us along. If you are ever going to travel through European countryside I seriously suggest mid-spring, just for the purpose of visiting the newborn animals.

We stopped a few times for sandwiches, coffee, water and carrots for the hardworking Froukia. We planned for the whole family to come visit the Pacific Northwest with promises of taking them on the steepest hike we can think of. Maybe Pine and Cedar Lakes Trail. It was a lovely way to spend an afternoon.

Last night we had a giant dinner with the whole family. It was a great way to end this part of the trip that has been so family, teamwork and togetherness focused. I've loved sliding into a borrowed family half a world away and feeling like I belonged. It's rare, I know, and I'm so grateful for it.

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I left from Amsterdam Centraal Station and worked most of the three hour journey to Köln. Trains are still my favorite way to travel (except horse drawn carriage of course). I don't get motion sick on them, we get wherever we are going in a decent amount of time usually, I can work or sleep or stare out the window. Generally it's the best way to go for me.

I reached Köln in the early evening, and it still feels like home. April and I traveled here together eight years ago when we were sixteen and I really love the city. Stepping out from the main train station the first thing you see is the awesome Dom Cathedral dominating the central square.

It's the largest in the western world, took something like 800 years to build and is breathtakingly beautiful. The east end has a large gold chest that reportedly holds the bones of the three wise men. Strolling into the cool, stone interior I felt like I was greeting an old friend. Evening light filtered through huge stained glass windows, mutedly illuminating the interior and quiet visitors, walking or sitting and praying in the many pews.

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The time was approaching when Rowan's bus was scheduled to arrive so I went to our meeting spot on the north stairs of the Dom to wait. The first thing I noticed were groups of young men being very loud passing around bottles. After an uncomfortable interaction with one of them I found another girl sitting on the steps alone wearing a large backpack and asked if I could sit with her. We chatted about Germany, school, and the upcoming Holiday of May 1st, which is why so many people were out celebrating early.

Besides an excuse to drink, there is a tradition that on the night of April 30th young men bring a decorated tree to the house of their beloved and leave it tied somewhere in front of the door. Rowan and I later saw one of these young men on the metro platform and he eagerly agreed when I asked for a picture.

It didn't take long for Ro and I to find each other this time, and soon we were in our very comfortable guest apartment in Uschi's building.

Uschi is April's godmother, and a wonderful person. We stayed with her when we visited Köln last time and she was kind enough to invite me back again.

In the morning Ro and I had breakfast with Uschi and her mother Truda who just moved in. Truda doesn't speak a lot of English but loves to tell stories. She tells them slowly with simple words because Rowan is learning German; Truda is so expressive even I can pick up the gist of what she's saying.

Through some seriously bad planning on my part, we only ended up having one full day in Köln but we made the most of it. Thankfully Uschi was able spend the whole day with us and took us on a tour of the city by bicycle. First starting at the Dom for a longer visit, then into the old city and past City Hall, where they are trying to build a new square but every time they try to lay foundations they run into a Roman ruin and all kinds of paperwork.

We biked across the Hohemzollern Brücken (bridge) where couples leave a lock on the fence with their names engraved on it and toss the keys into the Rhine far below. Then through a park and to the Flower and Botanical Gardens that are in full beautiful bloom right now.

Finishing the day with a long dinner and lots of conversation and stories with Truda and Uschi capped off a wonderful day in Köln.

Now I'm on another train and should get into Frankfurt in less than twenty minutes. Ro is again bussing, so hopefully we will be able to meet up again with quick success.

Last Days in Copenhagen: Canal Tours, Little Memaid, Botanical Gardens

The apartment is very cozy. Sofie and Emil have a bedroom with a sliding door, April sleeps on the couch as she is still getting over the plague, Rowan and I are bunking on pads on the floor between the kitchen area and the table. So really our feet are in the livingroom, heads in the dining room Ro in kitchen and me in the T.V. room with my head against the coffee table and body slightly under the dining table.

In the morning Emil or Sofie usually get up first and tip toe around us to the bathroom or shuffle alongside Rowan and open the fridge over her head to grab some bread and butter. Once roused we fold and store our bedding then make tea and toast maybe with eggs and eat breakfast together. A few people take turns showering, we check emails and facebook, upload pictures. Chat about the day and make jokes about how terrible we are at pronouncing Danish (it is a very difficult language).

Once, we convinced Emil to play piano for us, and the maestro sat down in his bathrobe and slippers to play a mix of classical, jazz and swing so April and I cut a rug somewhere between the music, living, dining and TV rooms. Somehow five adults in this small space is working out amicably. I love my new little family.

Monday and Tuesday were our touristy days. Sofie had the morning off from classes and took us to Nyhavn, which means "New Harbor" and is one of the oldest harbors in Copenhagen. Now it's all shops and restaurants for tourists taking pictures of semi-permanently parked, colorful sailing ships. Like this!

Our boat tour took us around the major canals. We saw the Opera house, museum, old palaces, and beautiful ships. We even saw the famous statue of the Little Mermaid from behind. Her head has been stolen twice since she was put in her place in the harbor in 1913 but with a new head she's looking pretty good chillin on her plinth. 

Copenhagen is proud of all things Hans Christian Andersen; the guide specifically pointed out a house he lived in Nyhavn and more than a few buildings, streets and squares are named after him.

After the tour Sofie left us and we shopped around for a bit in the old part of Copenhagen where there are pedestrian only streets and entered the main square where city hall and Tivoli Gardens are. Sofie's sister Matilda works in city hall and offered to give us a tour of the beautiful old building. We followed her up and down stone staircase, twisting around mezzanines and attempted to get into a locked ballroom or two.

Tuesday we explored the Royal Danish Botanical Gardens, wandering along the meandering paths basking in the glow of excellent landscape design. The glasshouse has gorgeous wrought iron spiral staircases to a catwalk around the inner edge of the dome to view the canopy of tropical plants. The temperature went from 85 degrees to above 100 in the distance of eighteen feet. One lap around the dome only; being up in the heat and humidity high in the air didn't seem like the safest of places to be for long.

Copenhagen has been incredibly cooperative weather-wise, sunny every day with temperatures creeping towards spring heat. Each day I was able to leave another piece of winter clothing at home.

On our last morning before leaving Denmark I went to Osterparken across the street to draw in the sunshine for a bit. I sat at a picnic table and drew a church tower in the distance behind row houses, a swan on the pond and people meandering the path around the water, taking in the birdsong.