The second J came home on Friday, he complained of muscle aches and a sore throat. This then escalated to him lying helplessly on the sofa and saying he may have contracted Schweinegrippe = pig flu.
Huh!?
I, on the other hand, suspected that J had just developed a Man Cold.
After finding out he had a 38.8˚Celsius temperature, i spent most of the weekend at his beck and call. And yes, i even made him soup. I also ventured out looking for a pharmacy so i could get him Wicks Medinait which is said to work against fever, pain and cold symptoms.
By Sunday morning he was feeling much better and so i suggested a walk around the park just to get some fresh air.
The weather was looking promising, so J suggested we go on a short bike ride to see the Rhine.
I reckon, it's been over a month since i've rode my bumble bee bicycle anywhere. And at least six months since i've officially done any exercise. So after being cooped up indoors, i was eager to go out.
It was 12˚C and partially sunny, the perfect weather to be out and about.
Several towns and cities along the Rhine river have been slightly flooded due to the mass melting of snow, so we wanted to see for ourselves how high the water had really risen.
So there we were on our bikes, snaking through the streets trying to find our way.
On one of the shortcuts, we had to pass an abandoned industrial factory with broken glass and bricked up windows. And beside it, a squatter area where punk-looking individuals lived in makeshift homes made out of scrap materials. It reminded me of a scene in Mad Max just minus the desert.
Needless to say, we didn't stay very long.
So we eventually got to the Rhine and the park parallel to it was full of people. People of all ages riding their bikes and random people strolling along taking photos. At last, i didn't feel so much like a tourist.
You can see in the above photos, how far the water has crept inland. Previously lined with trees and children's' train track, the water now lies in the foreground, where the promenade once used to be.
Benches along the river are now sitting in water. Jetties that once served as bridges had collapsed and are now isolated.
After crossing one of the massive bridges to get to the city center, we came across a very full canal. The water level had risen to the point where half of the sidewalk [beside the left building] was submerged in water.
Cycling through the back roads and getting slightly lost we stumbled upon a reasonably priced Arabic cafe/take away place called Haibibi.
My love for eating falafel was only heightened when i found out they served them with Hummus.
Each meal was served with a free glass of hot spiced tea and a basket of pita bread. I topped my meal off with a fresh carrot + orange juice and a coffee that ended up being so strong, it's no wonder i had troubles sleeping last night.
Satisfied and eager to just pass out, our next challenge was trying to find our way home.
Somewhere in the middle of the city was a random hill where we took a break, camwhored and watched the sun set.
On one of the massive bridges so we could get back to the other side but not before i had to stop and take a photo of the Cathedral.
After reaching the end, J asked a random couple if they knew of a shortest route back to our suburb. Preferably one that didn't involve passing the Mad Max squatter community. They then told us to follow a path that would get us to another bridge but to be careful because there was high water.
Not knowing what they meant, we followed their directions anyway and soon got to a path a metre wide with banks of water on both sides. And with no light except for the dodgy one on my bike, my biggest fear was falling into the river.
But we eventually made it to the very steep bridge. In the dark you couldn't see where the bridge ended. It was actually kind of scary. That red light at the top is the reflection of the flash on J's bike. The bridge itself was impressive but it was too dark to take a photo.
All in all, our "short" bike ride adventure lasted a total of five hours and i reckon we cycled about 17 km, maybe even more. But despite feeling as if my crotch is bruised and finding muscles that i never knew even existed, J and i had a really good time.
There's so much to see and so many more new streets to venture through. Life just got a little bit more interesting.
Huh!?
I, on the other hand, suspected that J had just developed a Man Cold.
After finding out he had a 38.8˚Celsius temperature, i spent most of the weekend at his beck and call. And yes, i even made him soup. I also ventured out looking for a pharmacy so i could get him Wicks Medinait which is said to work against fever, pain and cold symptoms.
By Sunday morning he was feeling much better and so i suggested a walk around the park just to get some fresh air.
The weather was looking promising, so J suggested we go on a short bike ride to see the Rhine.
I reckon, it's been over a month since i've rode my bumble bee bicycle anywhere. And at least six months since i've officially done any exercise. So after being cooped up indoors, i was eager to go out.
It was 12˚C and partially sunny, the perfect weather to be out and about.
Several towns and cities along the Rhine river have been slightly flooded due to the mass melting of snow, so we wanted to see for ourselves how high the water had really risen.
So there we were on our bikes, snaking through the streets trying to find our way.
On one of the shortcuts, we had to pass an abandoned industrial factory with broken glass and bricked up windows. And beside it, a squatter area where punk-looking individuals lived in makeshift homes made out of scrap materials. It reminded me of a scene in Mad Max just minus the desert.
Needless to say, we didn't stay very long.
So we eventually got to the Rhine and the park parallel to it was full of people. People of all ages riding their bikes and random people strolling along taking photos. At last, i didn't feel so much like a tourist.
You can see in the above photos, how far the water has crept inland. Previously lined with trees and children's' train track, the water now lies in the foreground, where the promenade once used to be.
Benches along the river are now sitting in water. Jetties that once served as bridges had collapsed and are now isolated.
After crossing one of the massive bridges to get to the city center, we came across a very full canal. The water level had risen to the point where half of the sidewalk [beside the left building] was submerged in water.
Cycling through the back roads and getting slightly lost we stumbled upon a reasonably priced Arabic cafe/take away place called Haibibi.
My love for eating falafel was only heightened when i found out they served them with Hummus.
Each meal was served with a free glass of hot spiced tea and a basket of pita bread. I topped my meal off with a fresh carrot + orange juice and a coffee that ended up being so strong, it's no wonder i had troubles sleeping last night.
Satisfied and eager to just pass out, our next challenge was trying to find our way home.
Somewhere in the middle of the city was a random hill where we took a break, camwhored and watched the sun set.
On one of the massive bridges so we could get back to the other side but not before i had to stop and take a photo of the Cathedral.
After reaching the end, J asked a random couple if they knew of a shortest route back to our suburb. Preferably one that didn't involve passing the Mad Max squatter community. They then told us to follow a path that would get us to another bridge but to be careful because there was high water.
Not knowing what they meant, we followed their directions anyway and soon got to a path a metre wide with banks of water on both sides. And with no light except for the dodgy one on my bike, my biggest fear was falling into the river.
But we eventually made it to the very steep bridge. In the dark you couldn't see where the bridge ended. It was actually kind of scary. That red light at the top is the reflection of the flash on J's bike. The bridge itself was impressive but it was too dark to take a photo.
All in all, our "short" bike ride adventure lasted a total of five hours and i reckon we cycled about 17 km, maybe even more. But despite feeling as if my crotch is bruised and finding muscles that i never knew even existed, J and i had a really good time.
There's so much to see and so many more new streets to venture through. Life just got a little bit more interesting.
Yup, it's official. Ich liebe Köln.
5 comments:
I reckon there's nothing like a good bike ride... and its definitely the best way to explore! Since u can almost stop anywhere, anytime.
Looks like the recent weather all around the world really got to many places huh?
Can't wait to see more photos!
How do you pronounce Koln? Its not Cologne is it? Pardon the ignorance.
Ms. Redd : Definitely! Well i'm still a little unsure when riding on the main road which also means i end up taking the longer route but i'm slowly getting better.
Yea global warming has definitely screwed us all over.
Anon: Funny you ask cause it's taken me close to 3 years, maybe even more to figure out how to say "Köln".
Sounds a bit like "Kuh-ln". But with a longer sounding "uhh" much.
For some reason my tongue has issues getting around the L + N combination.
For those who speak English and for most parts of the world it's "Cologne" like the men's aftershave.
But for German speakers it's Köln.
Basically, when "Koeln" is spelt using "oe" it's because some systems don't recognise the 2 little dots above the "o" which so happens to be called an umlaut.
OR go to
http://www.dict.cc/?s=koeln
and click on the little speaker/volume icon next to the "i" icon to hear the pronounciation.
Hope that helps!
Thanks for the tip. Actually went to the link to have a listen. It actually sounds like Kern.
Lovely pictures btw. Have been following your adventures on and off over the years. Besides graphic design, you're a good writer. :) Good luck with your new move.
Anon silent reader : Kern.
Damn it. Why didn't i think of that!? That would have been so much easier than my longwinded dribble. Thanks.
By the way, in case somebody else asks me how to pronounce Köln, i'm sooooo going to say it sounds like "Kern" but with an Australian accent.
=)
Anyway, thanks for following my adventures on and off for the last few years.
I really do appreciate those who do come back and read what i've been up to. Sometimes it's hard to keep an audience especially if my life evolves being at home most of the time.
But knowing that there are some people out there who do appreciate what i write, makes regurgitating my thoughts much less of a chore.
Thanks again for commenting.
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