A bit of a mistake

Father Christmas tanking up in February
Originally uploaded by CharlesFred.

(From Friday... it is now Sunday and we are (thankfully) back in Amsterdam)

Here we are travelling again. This time to Cologne, on the banks of the Rhine, about 270 kms from Amsterdam.

It is carnival.

The streets are full of clowns, cowboys and indians, cows, other animals, Blues Brothers, Pacific Islanders, construction workers, pirates, monks, bishops, nuns, Sister Bernadette's (well, she IS German), prisoners, soldiers, marines, policemen, vikings, kangaroos, cats, ghosts, roman soldiers, polka dots, dustbins, bird flu-free chickens and the like. Most carry a bottle of Kolischer Bier. These get thrown onto the pavement when empty and the streets are filled with broken glass. It is not our scene.

The museums are closed, the shops are closed, the bars and restaurants have turned into drinking orgies filled with Oomm-Pah-Pah music.

We are going now to the station to change our tickets to return tomorrow afternoon. Oh well. Maybe Cologne looks better in the summer sun.