KOLN/COLOGNE, GERMANY

We arrived in the morning and picked up our rental car. The true test of my nerves began. Driving a standard in a country where the traffic lights, rules, were different and the signs illegible was, well, fun! Slightly stressful, but fun! And the GPS was hilarious! The way our guide pronounced the German street names would make a German person cringe I'm sure, but it made us howl with laughter.

We visited the famous Cathedral. You can't be in Koln without seeing it as it is truly the largest Cathedral I've ever seen. We climbed most of the way up the spire until Shauna decided she had had enough and was getting dizzy. I ventured for the top in the hopes of a good shot, but alas, they had it fenced in completely and I couldn't get a clear view. Bummer. We did see the huge bells in the spire and got a "Grouse Grind" like workout. My calves still hurt 4 days later ;-)

We had lunch followed by the popular Berliner doughnut (which doesn't touch Timmy's).

And and if you are wondering why we have a photo with a cutout of Ellen... well we are helping her on her mission to conquer the world:)

And we were off! Next stop, wine country in the Rheingau Valley!