Koeln Tour II

This past few days in class our unit (we zoom through units) has been Multikulti. We have talked about immigration here in Germany and back at home, as well as the emotions and problems that come along with entering a new culture. It is actually relevant, since we too are strangers (auslaende) and are experiencing some of the same things. Germany, like the US, has an immigration test which non-citizens (even if you're born in Germany, you're not necessarily a citizen) must pass in order to become citizens. I passed the miniature version of the test, so i suppose that i would do alright on the real thing if i were to take it (albeit i'd probably study more). Our teacher said that many Germans can not pass the test. Then,after school, we took the train up to Cologne, where the world's best tour guide gave us a tour of the Koelner Dom. To say the least, this was a remarkable tour. The size and grandeur of the edification is jaw-dropping. The gothic architecture is truly stunning, always drawing the eye to the heavens above. Inside, the building is no less impressive (except for the table "altar" in the middle). Although the eye is drawn up, it is incredible to see the intricate mosaics covering the floor. The side altars are also very beautiful, not to mention the stained glass windows lining the walls of the cathedral. We were also able to climb the south tower, giving us a breathtaking view of Koeln. I really can't say what part of the church was my favorite (you could probably guess my least favorite...), but i overall enjoyed the tour immensely. I hope to take a train up to Koeln on a Sunday and catch a mass there, although i could probably find one on a Saturday night or weekday too. Our tour ended with probably one of the best parts of culture; the food. Hartwig has connections, and through one of them at a bakery, got us some baked goods to sample. These baked goodies are really too good to describe, and this time they included a pizza flavored bread stick with bacon and cheese, a plum cake, a plum dumpling (plums baked inside a sweet dough with a bottom layer of some sort of crystalized sugar), lemon cake, something similar to an elephant ear only with raisons and less cinnamon, a regular strudel cake, an apfel strudel cake, almond covered nougat pretzel with chocolate, and i have a feeling that i'm forgetting one or two more. I headed home right after the tour and ate, watched the news (auf Deutsch of course!), cleaned up, and went upstairs to do my homework before i go to bed. I'm not sure what i'm doing this weekend, although the beer fair (with 1000 varieties of beer may be on the agenda, it might not be though, it's probably expensive).