In Köln

And so our stay in Köln, and Europe, has come to an end.

A lot of the other students have asked me at the end of this week, if I was really bored of the city after following Michael here, but not partaking in any of the study tour activities. I survived, mostly by exploring the city, finding places to eat, and doing some shopping.

Shortly after my birthday celebrations (and the no doubt wonderful morning for all the students who had to go to Bonn the next day) the weekend rolled around, and we discovered a Go-Karting track halfway between Köln and Bonn to race around since the Nurburgring was covered in snow. We didn't know how much to buy though, so when we bought 4 races and found ourselves exhausted after 2 (it really killed my arms) we headed home and went back the next day. Before we left, we also headed out to Michael Schumacher's hometown, 30 minutes east of Köln by train, and went to the Go-karting track there as well. We had to compensate for not being able to see the Nurburgring somehow.

I also went with some of the other students to an Ice Hockey game last sunday, between the Köln Haie (Sharks) and Duisburg (unsure about their mascot). Despite not knowing the basic rules (the game is surprisingly played in thirds), it was very exciting to watch - a fight even broke out, much to the spectators delight. Köln ended up winning in overtime by golden goal, 4-3. Crowd was ecstatic.

We've been eating out quite a bit while in Köln (much to the detriment of my bank balance), though variety isn't the spice of life here - selection ranges from German pubs/breweries, Italian restaurants and Kebab shops, repeat. Despite this, we did have some fantastic food in Köln (including the best Spaghetti Bolognaise I've ever eaten), and all in all, had a great time with the other Aussie and German students. Proost!

(Daniel)