Germany

After our fun time spent in Switzerland, my mother and I boarded a train and headed to the beautiful city of Koln. It was there that we met up with my sister, Klara! Lucky for me, she had already contacted the airport and picked up my lost luggage! (Thanks Klara! <3 ) Her father also met us in Koln, and again, we lucked out with the baggage situation when we learned that they have a large car, (Large in European standards). After re-uniting with them, we drove the 50 min car ride to their hometown, Dinslaken.

The Borgardts home is so cute, very modern on the inside, artisitic, and it gives off that certain comfortable home feeling. Klara was nice enough to give up her room to us, so that is where mom and I are sleeping for now! The first night Klara's mother put together a special "grill dinner" at least, that is what I would call it! There is a little grill placed in the center of the table, and everyone is able to talk, and cook their food however and whatever way they want. I think it's an ingenious idea! It's a great way to eat and socialize!

We got to SLEEP IN the next morning (which just happened to be the 4th of July). That really helped us I think, we were more ready to explore Germany with less delirium. Leisurely we woke up and ate breakfast, then we mosy'd out onto the town and shopped, saw the sights, and leaned more and more about Klara's life and where she came from. Dinslaken is one of the cutest towns I have ever seen! I love how it gives off that small-town feel but there is still plenty to do here and I also like the fact that everything is so close in proximity. You can be anywhere in no time at all! We came home to eat a tomato soup lunch, then it was time for a bike ride to a town called Osroy. On the way to Osroy we enjoyed the scenic Rhine river, and saw quite a bit of wildlife, including swans, a very large and fast hare, different birds of prey, and then of course we saw domestic cows. When it was time to cross, we boarded a ferry that brought us across the Rhine. We took the picture of Klara and I on this ferry. Osroy was a short distance from the water, and again it was one of the cutest towns I have ever seen! We got ice cream, called Spaghetti ice cream, It really looks similar to spaghetti, but don't be fooled! That was some of the best ice cream I have ever had! Well, we ate the ice cream, and had a celebratory beer in honor of it being the 4th and all, then we rode our bikes home. All and all it was a great day!

The next day started off as leisurely as the last. Klara, her father, my mother, and I all got in the car and drove to Koln. This day was the day for all of us to be tourista-sans (an inside joke between mom and I). We took a gondola across the Rhine and during our ride we passed over a spa, viewing from a distance the nudity and relaxation of the guests below. Koln is a very beautiful, and historic city. As we walked along the river on our way to the Dom, Klara and her father filled us in on the cities happenings, and it's history. Klara's father enjoys running marathons and he showed us where they run, I can only imagine how fun that would be but alas, I'm WAY too lazy. The bridge by the Dom has a bunch of locks on it with great stories. Two people in love place a lock on the bridge, then throw the key into the river below to signify how strong their love is for each other. It is such a romantic way to show affection, don't you think?

Upon reaching the Dom, we went inside. It was one of the most magnificent cathedrals I have ever been in! It was built to be one of the tallest churches in the world, and it was the highest building in the world for a while too. The pure brilliance of the stained glass, and the high ceilings blew me away! The 533 steps up the Koln Dom also blew me away. We walked all the way up to the top, and from there we got a splendid view of the surrounding area. I'm not religious at all but this church definitely pulled emotions out of me. The Koln Dom is also famous four containing relics from the Magi! I didn't see them but I think that is pretty amazing!

We walked around down town Koln and shopped a little, then toured more in search of a local restaurant to find a special dish from Koln, Halver Hahn. We found one eventually and had a delectable lunch (and a beer). After lunch we planned on visiting the Lindt chocolate museum, but alas we were a little to late on arrival, and we weren't admitted to the museum. Nonetheless we bought chocolate there. A tad tired, and munching on chocolate, we walked all the way back to the car. We estimate the total walking mileage of the day to be approx. 9 kilometers. PLUS the climb up and down the dome. What a great way to work off all of this great food we've been having!

When we got home from Koln, Klara and I went to a lake to meet up with some friends of hers. On our walk to the spot where we were going to meet with them, we stumbled upon some people having way too good of a time. I opened my big mouth, and they immediately caught on to my American accent and asked me if I wanted to dance. I declined the invite but that came back to haunt me. Klara and I caught up with her friends and we spent the evening chilling by the lake and playing a card game. I won :D

We had to wake up a little earlier this morning. We found an ATM and added to our quickly depleting stache of Euro's. Then we took the train to a town called Oberhausen. On our way off of the train, we heard a knocking on a train window. I didn't pay attention to it BUT Klara said "Oh Cori, LOOK! It's those people from last night!" My face immediately turned into a tomato and I just kept walking. I could not believe that they would remember me!

First we went to the old famous gas container, (now converted to somewhat of a convention center with different exhibits) called Groningen. Today they are having an exhibit called Magical Places. It was truly unbelievable! On the first floor, amazing pictures of nature where hanging so everyone could see the splendor of nature. I was proud to see that many of the natural beauties are from the USA. The next floor demonstrated man-made marvels. This was also very interesting to view. We then took an elevator to the tip top of this Groningen. It was also a splendid view of the surrounding area, and just like Koln, we ended up walking all the way down. Klara and I figured it to be about 27 flights of stairs. We then went to a large shopping center, kind of like a mall. It had all sorts of clothes and that's always fun to see the styles being shown here. We shopped for awhile but then we had to come back home to Dinslaken because Klara and I were going to meet a friend! Simon lives in a town about 30 mins away from Dinslaken, called Xanton. We met up with him and had ice cream, and he showed us around his home town. It was good to see him again!

Tonight we are going to the local pub. This is our last night with Klara and her family. We are having such a great time, and they are one of the nicest families you'll ever meet. I love them to death! Tomorrow we take the train to meet up with Vera, in Holland!