traveldiary.stracke.us

It is raining most of the time during our stay in Cologne. Monday, February 22nd is no exception. Today we take a chartered bus to Amsterdam, Holland. We leave with our 30 Shen students from Koeln-Porz Gymnasium at 8 AM, and at 9 AM, we are still stuck in the Cologne morning rush hour traffic. Stefan, our bus driver, lives in near-by Leverkusen, and knows every short-cut and back-alley. He leaves the Autobahn, where the “Stau” has caused the traffic to come to a grinding hault. For the next 30 minutes, he drives our big bus through narrow city streets and residential areas of Cologne. Gabi and I are sitting in the first row, and have a chance to admire his heart-stopping driving skills. A few times, we hold our breath, when he drives full speed dangerously close to parked cars. Any minute now, I expect him to wipe out a few cars with his big bus, but his aim is perfect. Eventually, we come to the Autobahn in Leverkusen, and can cruise to Amsterdam without further delay.
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My first day in Germany begins with a bus trip to Maastricht in the Netherlands. In Aachen, I have about 10 minutes in the “Extrablatt” restaurant, before we have to pick up Gabi’s students. Not even enough time to order something to drink. I take out my toiletries and use the restaurants restroom, so I can freshen up before moving on. It is raining, as we cross the former border between Germany and Holland, but in Maastricht the sun comes out for a short time.
Masstricht is the capital of the Dutch province Limburg, located at 50° 51′ N,5° 41′E, along the river “Maas”. Our driver parks our bus ( he prefers it to be called “coach”) outside of the pedestrian town center next to the river”Maas”, and we walk across one of the bridges, having nice views of the waterfront and old merchant houses. The Romans were here about 2000 years before us (Traiectum ad Mosam) and, under Emperor Augustus, had built already a bridge across the river.
During the French-Dutch war (1672-1679), King Louis XIV’s musketeer Charles d’Artagnan was killed here in 1673 during the siege of the town. He died from a gunshot wound through the throat. Fortunately, today the town is much more peaceful and more of a tourist destination. It was also here in 1992 where the Treaty of Maastricht was signed, creating the modern Europe.
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