Slightly late, but that's ok!

Today was our first trip to Koln. It's only about 30 minutes from Bonn by train. I really enjoy riding the train and I wish there were more trains to ride in the US. It would be cool if you could catch a train from like College Station to Houston. I'm sure you probably can it's just not a popular thing but I wish it was, I think its a great way to travel. Of course I could change my mind about that by the end of the trip since there's quite a bit of train travel in my future. The cathedral in Cologne is breath taking. It's so big and so intricate it's stunning. The hauptbahnhof is right next to it so you leave the station and just bam, the cathedral is towering in front of you. Our first stop was the Koln Zoo. It was a really pretty zoo, one of the best I've been too. It just felt like you could really see all the animals better and get closer to them. Our tour guide was really knowledgeable and nice. The best part about the zoo was the elephant exhibit. We actually got to go inside the elephant house and walk through the indoor exhibit hall (the elephants were outside) and see all the cages for the elephants. They also showed us where the food is prepared and how the elephants are fed. We also got to see the big traps they have for the elephants that are used when the elephants need special things done and must be held still. We got to get really up close and personal with the elephants too. They remained behind the fence but we got to feed the little male who was 5 years old. That was a really neat experience. The keeper also showed us all the tricks they had taught him and he reminded me of Knight and Pippin because he kept repeating the tricks over and over in order to get food. It was cute. Our next stop after the zoo was the Sports University Cologne, specifically the department of biomechanics and orthopedics. We got to hear a presentation about Oscar Pistorius and wether his cheetah blades gave him an advantage over normal runners. They showed us the labs and told us a little about their research. I thought it was really interesting and I wish I could have heard more about it. Our next day in Cologne was spent at the Gestapo house and the Cologne Cathedral. The gestapo house was really moving. It was just eye opening to see and hear about the horrible conditions they forced people to live in and the fact that they would torture and sometimes kill them. From the US the atrocities of the holocaust seem so far away and old history. However being able to actually go to the places and see where all the horrible war crimes were committed really brings the history to life and gives it deeper meaning. That afternoon we got to take a small tour around the inside of the Cologne Cathedral followed by a rooftop tour. The cathedral is absolutely gorgeous on the inside, the pictures and cravings are so intricate and detailed. I really love that they spent so much time making the cathedral so beautiful. I mean even parts of the floor is done in a extensive mosaic. I wish that my home church was that gorgeous. I mean, it's definitly one of the prettiest churchs in Houston but it pales in comparison to the gothic cathedrals of Europe. The rooftop tour was a little sketchy. We went up scaffolding to the top in an elevator. I know it was safe or they wouldn't have taken us up there but still, scaffolding suspended 100 meters in the air freaks me out a little bit. The view from the rooftop was amazing though and totally worth it. I took so many pictures. It was cool to go inside the roof and see the top of the original church. I really love all the history and the once in a life time experiences that we get to do on this trip. It really is so worth it and I feel like I'm learning so much. I can't wait to see what else is in store!