Rhine Getaway, Day 3 Cologne Germany

     Day 3 of our Rhine Getaway was in Cologne, Germany.  I was surprised that many German towns had French sounding names and vice versa.  This visit began early on a Sunday morning with a walk into the old section of town and a tour of the beautiful Cathedral of Cologne.  The beauty of the cathedral is magnificent.  It was hard to absorb all that our eyes were seeing.  These grand buildings would be amazing feats of skill even with modern engineering and hydraulic equipment, but to consider that they were made with hand tools is incredible.  
     During our many visits to the cathedrals and churches, I found my thoughts poised somewhere between two positions.  One was awe at the incredible architecture, art, sheer size, devotion, and reverence.  The other was the disproportionate expense of human sacrifice and deprivation caused by taking so many resources out of the hands of the common people and into the coffers of the churches. This was one of the tenets of the protestant reformation, and it is still evident today in the differences between the European Catholic and Protestant chapels and cathedrals.  The only way I can reconcile both positions in my own mind is to hope that these splendid buildings were indeed monuments to God and not to mortal men.  If they were truly dedicated to God, then they are indeed monuments of devotion to the Most High, in the most beautiful ways known to all of mankind.  If they were built in praise of mortal men or to show off the wealth of local nobles, then it is a shame that such grandeur is misplaced. 
     Cologne was also the center of a large Jewish population in the Middle Ages.  Currently, archaeological excavations are under way to show ruins from the Middle Ages, and even from the Roman Empire.  One site that we were privileged to see was an ancient Jewish "mikvah," or ritual bath.  Having studied some of these Old Testament rites, this was of tender interest to me.  Our tour guide explained to us that during the horrible black plague in the mid fourteenth century, Jewish citizens were protected from illness by the cleanliness standards they observed through these ritual baths. Envious and suspicious of the Jews' good health, some early Christians who were terrorized by the plagues, accused the Jews of causing the illness or "curse."  Tragically, they ordered the mass slaying of thousands of Jews.  It sorrows me to know that the Holocaust of the twentieth century was not a new concept for Europe, but a continuation of human suffering that had endured many centuries.
     Since it was Sunday, we did not shop or eat in restaurants in Cologne.  I regretted missing a chance to purchase authentic cologne in Cologne, but such it is.  Instead, we visited as many of the old historic churches as we could find.  We did a lot of walking, and it was an unseasonably warm late spring day, but we enjoyed the cool and quiet of many beautiful sanctuaries.  Most of the churches had posted photos that showed the damage that the buildings had suffered during Wold War II, and the reconstruction that had been done in the past seventy years.  Some stained glass windows had been removed and protected during the bombings.  Others were not spared.   The huge Cologne Cathedral was not hit with bombs, but rather was purposefully left untouched to act as a visual landmark for the bomber pilots who flew over the city.  The building was preserved for grim reasons, but gratefully, it was preserved.
     We walked in both the old and new sections of the city.  The older sections were mostly rebuilt to recreate their former medieval splendor.  The work of restoration is impressive and beautifully authentic .  The modern sections were quite urban and not unlike parts of our own cities in the United States.  A major difference was that there were fewer visible cars.  The apartments had hidden driveways and garages that seemed tiny and difficult to access.  The old and the new elements were mixed in the cobblestone streets that ran between beautiful old buildings but were sadly littered with trash, beer bottles and used drug syringes from the parties of the previous night.  The revelers had gone home to bed, and we tourists enjoyed the quiet, if dirty streets, in the early Sunday morning. 

Rhine Getaway, Day 2

Kinderdijk, Holland

               

                The Viking Gullveig sailed during the night.  We were pleased that a river boat is so smooth that we could feel no seasickness or ripples at all.  The ship moved at about eight miles per hour, on average, during our journey up the Rhine.  We were surprised that the Rhine is such a busy working river.  Large industrial barges passed every few minutes, carrying loads of chemicals, fuel, minerals, scrap metal, and all sorts of other products.  We were also surprised to see the river was busy with the traffic of many pleasure boats and cruise ships similar to ours.  I don’t think I have ever seen a river in the United States that had so much boat traffic, not even the mighty Mississippi.

                On the morning of Saturday, June 7, we were docked in Kinderdijk, home of a large number of Dutch windmills.  We walked along the large dike and heard our guide explain the process of pumping out water to drain and reclaim land that is well below sea level.  The many windmills were operational, but they no longer pump water.  That job is now done with much more powerful coal fired electric power plants.  We were impressed with the size of the beautiful mills.  I learned that in a former day, the miller and his wife and family of 10-12 children lived inside each mill.  In fact, so many children lived in the area, that the millers named it Kinderdijk.  Even today, adventurous renters may lease a windmill for the summer and live inside.  We toured a mill and climbed the steep narrow stairs.  The families learned to use the limited space very efficiently.  We learned that the millers used a method of communication that involved moving the huge blades of the mill into certain positions to indicate news to the distant millers.  One position showed good news – births, marriages, etc.  Another indicated a death or serious illness.  Yet another indicated the time to co-ordinate the timing of the pumping. 

                We discovered the mechanisms of the windmills and how the millers regulated the speed of the blades by adding or removing canvas coverings on the blades.  They were also able to move the top turrets where blades were attached by using a system of chains and posts or rocks on the ground.  The entire top of the mill could turn to catch the wind from any direction.  It really was a marvel of engineering in spite of very primitive tools and technology.

                The area of Kinderdijk is preserved as a United Nations UNESCO World Heritage site.  This is a special and coveted designation for tourism.  The UNESCO folks made a grand tribute to the ingenuity of the original builders of the dikes, mills, canal systems, and adjustable waterways.  I fully agree with the UNESCO tribute.  The entire operation is an amazing show of man’s ability to manipulate his environment to create a better place to live, to work, and to grow food.  I was duly impressed, but at the same time I couldn’t help noticing the double standard on the part of the UNESCO folks who blanch with horror at the thought of a modern community who would drain a swampy lowland and disturb a prized wetland.  The pendulum of prosperity and priority does swing to and fro through the ages.  Those primitive engineers would not be welcomed among today’s environmentalists.

                After a very pleasant tour, we reboarded our ship and began sailing for Cologne, Germany.  We enjoyed watching the many passing ships, and I took lots of photos in the area of Nijmegen, the Netherlands, which was the scene of much fighting during World War II.  The bridges over the Rhine were fiercely defended and fought over.  I stood on the top deck of the ship shooting photos and emailing them to Peter, who was online in his mission office in Brazil.  I truly marveled that the scene before my eyes was almost instantly in front of Peter’s eyes, many thousands of miles away.    What a miracle!

Day one of our Rhine Getaway

I hope this to be the first in a series of eight posts.  Before the wonderful experience fades from my memory, I want to write about it, namely, our long anticipated Rhine Getaway.  Wayne and I  sailed up the Rhine River from Amsterdam, Netherlands to Basel, Switzerland on the Viking Gullveig from June 5-13, 2014.  I’m not sure if my recollections will be of interest to anyone other than myself, but I will write so that I may enjoy my memories for many years to come.  I will try to record our daily adventures as well as my reflections along the way.

                 We arrived in Amsterdam on a direct flight from Washington Dulles airport.  We were in the air all night and arrived quite tired with a full day ahead of us.  We tried unsuccessfully to rest a bit in our stateroom, but excitement and eagerness to see the city won.  Let me briefly describe the Viking Gullveig.  It is a brand new long ship that had only been in service for seven weeks.  Everything was sparkling new and shiny clean.  Our stateroom was a “veranda suite,” meaning we had one of the few rooms with a separate sitting room.   While not large, our space was ample and most pleasant.  The ship’s crew kept everything in order, and we never lacked for any comfort nor even for any luxury.  The ship had only 188 passengers and a crew of 54.  There was a large lounge and informal terrace restaurant on our upper level.  Above us was a rooftop sundeck with a walking track and the ship’s pilot house.  The pilot house could actually retract into a lower level, if the ship needed to decrease its height to fit under a bridge.  One level below us was the main dining room, reception area, and additional staterooms.  The bottom level housed the ship’s crew.  It was so nice to be able to unpack our luggage and to know that we would remain in the same floating hotel room as we moved from city to city throughout Europe.  

                 As the ship filled with passengers, we had a day in port to visit Amsterdam.  We walked into a central area past the bus and train terminals, and we dodged the many cyclists that fill the streets of Amsterdam.  After quite a long and somewhat confusing walk, we caught a tram to the famous Rijks Museum.  In this splendid building we saw the works of the Dutch masters, including Rembrandt and my favorite, Vermeer.  It was amazing to think that we were standing inches away from these famous masterpieces that we have admired only in books and photographs throughout our school years.  The museum allowed guests to photograph the paintings, which surprised me.  I don’t remember an art gallery in the United States that allows photography.  After seeing as many beautiful paintings as we could absorb in our tired brains, we took a canal tour of Amsterdam that concluded near our ship.  After a shower and a change of clothes, we joined our fellow passengers for our first dinner on board the ship.

                 The other passengers were mostly Americans with a few guests from Great Britain, South Africa, and Australia.  I don’t think any of the passengers were non English speaking.  Nearly everyone was retired and white.  I may have been the youngest passenger.   I noted that we all seemed to be from a very similar demographic.  This could be seen in the women’s clothes.  Nearly every outfit I saw on the women was clothing that I either own, have tried on, or seen in the stores that I frequent.  The dress code was casual and comfortable.  The other passengers were very friendly and interesting to meet.  Each evening we sat at a table for six, and we met different folks each night.  Their stories were interesting and entertaining.  I think we may have been the only passengers who never drank a drop of alcohol.  We were surprised at the consumption of our fellow passengers.  Wine was poured at every meal and frequently between meals, in generous quantities.  I didn’t notice any drunkenness, but there was an atmosphere of relaxation all about us. 

                 I couldn’t describe a Viking cruise without mentioning the exquisite food.  Whether in the informal deck terrace buffet or in the formal dining room, every dish was delicious, mostly healthy, beautifully presented, and very politely served.  Special consideration was made for Wayne’s gluten free diet, and he was able to eat as grand as the rest of us.  The portions were adequate but not excessive.  It all seemed very tasteful and classy, with never a glimpse of junk food.  Our chef was a very skilled artist.

                 My first impressions of Europe were through very tired eyes, but I did note some differences from the United States.  While the cities were mostly modern and very beautiful, there seemed an overall lower standard of living.  Many people travel only by bicycle or mass transit.  That may be handy in the big cities and picturesque in the pleasant weather, but I shudder to think of how miserable it would be to carry children and groceries on a bicycle in the rain or snow.  I’m grateful that I’m able to do my traveling at home in the comfort of a mini SUV.   Bicycles are fun for sport, but I would not want to have to rely on them as my principle means of travel, other than mass transit.  The highways in Europe have narrower lanes and slimmer vehicles than those in the US.  Also, the personal space buffer around vehicles is much closer than I am accustomed.  It seemed that cars and trucks were speeding past each other with only a couple of inches between them.    Europe was magnificent to visit, but I’m not eager to change my home address to some new location across the pond.  On the other hand, there was unmatched charm in moving about in cities that are many centuries old.  To think that the buildings before my eyes were constructed during the Middle Ages, is awe inspiring.  It is amazing to feel so much history.  Places that had previously been known to me only in books and movies were actually before my eyes and ears and nose.  That is an incredible feeling, and I found myself thinking of my ancestors that lived here many generations ago.