We slept really well, there is a very, very slight vibration from the engines but it’s soothing rather than disturbing. Neil and I chose to have a light breakfast in the lounge rather than the more extensive buffet in the restaurant. Neil picked a spot right at the front, I suspect because it felt more like he was driving the boat, he’s missing being behind a steering wheel!
After breakfast we caught up on exciting things like washing underwear, before venturing up to the sundeck. We’d woken to bright sunshine but the wind was still a bit brisk. Jo and I practised our putting but with three short holes that took about 5 minutes.
Around 12 noon we saw the spires of Cologne Cathedral appearing on the horizon and watched them grow larger and larger before finally docking near the centre of the city.
We spent the entire afternoon in the town, the first hour and a half with our guide. She gave us an overall description of the main sights in the Old Town centre and left us at the entrance to the huge Cathedral.
What a towering colossus it is! The interior is dark, but the sunshine beaming through the high stained glass windows was spectacular.
Afterwards we walked a few blocks to the Hard Rock Cafe for a refreshing Kolsch beer , the local brew. Today is Greg’s birthday and he was ticking off another achievement on his travel bucket list , to visit as many Hard Rock Cafes as he can all around the world and buy a pin in each one. Cologne was his 74th!
After raising a glass to his birthday we wandered back to the boat past the crowds enjoying the sunny warm day ( it got to 24 degrees today! ) and had about an hour before heading down to the restaurant for another tasty dinner. Part way through dinner the lights went down and the table was surrounded by a crowd of waiters singing a birthday song and a cake appeared in front of Greg. He’s certainly had a memorable birthday!
Lots of fun in the lounge afterwards when we managed to win the Trivia competition run by the Cruise Director.
Tomorrow we enter the Rhine gorge, can’t wait!