All European countries seem similar when we see major cities depicted in media, but one in particular stands out to me.
The first European country I visited is Belgium. Belgium is a stop-over for us—it's convenient to fly there rather than wait longer and land in a more expensive airport like Paris Charles de Gaulle. It is also more convenient to take a train rather than fly in planes when you're in Europe, so we took one and headed over to our second destination: Cologne, Germany
Germans are known for their engineering, manners, and stoicism, and I can see why. I don't remember seeing a piece of trash on the streets of Cologne.
A large, green neon sign of beer, that was my first greeting when formally arriving in The Cologne Central Station. A fitting welcome for the Germans. We walked out to bask in the oddly bleak sun, sighting Cologne Cathedral and its impressive size.
Cologne's Streets and Christmas Markets
As we strolled the streets of Cologne after visiting Cologne Cathedral, I was awed at how clean everything was. It was afternoon around rush hour yet people did not hurry, there were no honking horns, the streets were clean, and everyone just seemed to keep to themselves. It's very different from the cultures of Southeast Asia, where banter is common and raucous is not an issue. Even other European countries like Italy and France had admittedly dirty, rundown areas ignored by the news and media. Germany wasn't really like that. And how lovely were the Christmas Markets! My dad bought beer from this small, German girl in a Christmas Market stall. I guess alcohol unifies people from far-away places.
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