Travelog for: Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
today I met my new host Katja and the ToyVoyagers Snakey from Hong Kong and Bamboo from Spain.



fam-united also visited Cologne today and met my new host here.

The very most important thing you have to see in Cologne is Cologne Cathedral. It is a renowned monument of German Catholicism and Gothic architecture and is a World Heritage Site. Cologne Cathedral was built between 1248 and 1880. The cathedral is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe, its towers are about 157 m tall.





Katja promised that later we would prpbably have a look at the inside of the cathedral. So we first went to see River Rhine, also in the picture you can see the Hohenzollern Bridge, a bridge for trains and pedestrians / cyclists.





There are also lots of excursion boats.



We followed the promenade and walked past the old town of Cologne. Those houses were built in 17th ventury.



Katja had a great idea: We would visit the German Chocolate Museum (Imhoff Schokoladenmuseum) situated in this partly old building.



First we walked around the building.





A view from the roof of the building ...



Inside the museum we saw all the machines which are necessary to make delicious chocolate.





There is a real chocolate fountain! We all got wafers dipped into melted chocolate. Yummy!









These are moulds for Easter Bunnies and Santa Claus.



This is an old shop.



We went back to the city than.







In the old town you can find narrow lanes and lovely houses.





Than we went into the cathedral.





Look at the fantastic mosaic on the floor.



Unfortunately it was time for getting home than.

Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
I went with Katja to her workplace in a law firm today. As the weather was great, we took a log walk in our lunch break.

First Katja showrd me the water tower, situated at the highest point of the city centre.



We waked around in the city ...





There are also lots of old houses, they are often covered with slate and they have green shutters.



In the background you can see the outskirts of the neighbour city Wuppertal.



Katja suggested that we could walk on the "Route of Tools" (Trasse des Werkzeugs), a lane for pedestrians and cyclists which was built on a former, now closws railway track for freight trains. The building work was sponsored by local companies, mostly tool producing companies, that's why it is called "Route of Tools". It starts in the district Hasten and follows the old railway track to the central station in the city centre, about 4,5 km.



It seems that spring would come to Europe



There are distance data painted on the ground - 4 km to the station.





We found a bench, made of a large screw cramp.



Sometimes you can see remains of the former railway track.





I found those wrench patters stamed into the tarmac.



Those glass knobs are isolaters.



At this paoint the lane really looks like industry!



There are signs with the logos of sponsoring companies ...



... and one sign showing the coat of arms of Remscheid.





Here are a lot of company buildings close to the lane, these are still in use ...



... and those are dilapidated.



Katja showed me the former slaughterhouse, the wholw complex is under monument protection. Today you can find offices here and crafts enterprises.













Here are more company signs.



Already close to the station I saw a train, it's track running parallel to the Route of Tools.







We nearly reached the station.







From here we went to a nearby supermarket to buy a few things for dinner, than we had to return to work.

Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
my host showed us a bit around the city when we went to work. The first photos were taken in the vicinity of my current home.







A restaurant is situated in this lovely house, my host told me.





Here you can see the main entrance of the shopping mall.



This is the city hall, its tower is 48 m tall. Our workplace is not far from here. We had to hurry to get there in time



Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
a new guest arrived today, it's Albus Star from England.



We played with the pets later. Three ferrets are living here - funny, lively, furry and cheeky things.

This is Shiva.



I was a bit afraid of them because they mostly eat birds. Okay, I am not a chicken or a duck, but they might get siily ideas!



This is Zaehnchen, the most curious thing on earth as my host says



Bye for today
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,

We took a walk today in the district Luettringhausen. We brought Katja's friend's son to the soccer training there. In the meantime we took a walk in the surroundings.





We found a lovely place, hidden in the valley - an historic hammer mill. Iron and steel was produced here since 15th century.



A large millwheel was lying on the ground.















When we walkes further through the valley we saw a lot of meadows.





I like those houses here.





Bye for today
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
we went out for a walk in the afternoon, although the weather is no longer that nice as yesterday. Here you can see the street where I am living at the moment, lots of lovely houses built in the early 1900's.



The next photo was still taken in the city centre.



Than we walked towards the outskirts of Remscheid, deep in a valley.



They are having Easter trees here, not only Christmas trees



Here you can also find very old houses, much older than those in the city centre.



You can often find older industrial sites close to dwellings here.



Snowdrops are blooming everywhere.



Here is a factory which produces varnishes for industrial purposes.





We reached the district Hasten than. Here you can see two museums, the German Tool Museum and a Patrician Villa, built in late 18th century. In this Villa you can see how people lived in those years.





There is a park behind those museums, built as an outdoor facility. There are several machines outside. (We needed a little rest after walking so long.)











From here we still had to walk uphill for more than half an hour to get home - it's really exhausting here

Love
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
today I helped my host to cook a delicious soup. It is a vegetarian soup.
All you need is vegetable stock, red lentils, a garlic clove, a piece of ginger, soy sauce, salt and pepper.

Katja cooked pineapple jam with lime and ginger in the morning, you can see the glasses cooling down in the background, also delicious stuff.



First we had to chop garlic and ginger ...



... than braise it lightly in a little bit oil ...



... lentils and vegetable stock were added. Everything had to boil for about 12 minutes.

In the meantime I watched Katja's daughter prepare a fruit salad with pineapple, kiwi fruit, banana and orange.



She is a cook, she can cut extremely fast



Our soup was ready than. We had to puree it after adding a bit soy sauce, pepper and salt. Yummy!



Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
we are having wonderful weather here.

We took a walk today to visit Muengsten Bridge, the highest railway bridge in Germany. The bridge is overspanning a valley between Remscheid and the neighbour city Solingen. We had to walk for about an hour to get there. Our walk took us through a rural area.





We went into the forest than. There was a viewpoint. We saw the bridge here. Katja told us that we would still have to walk some time until we were in the valley under the bridge.



We were under the bridge than, but still not on the bottom of the valley.



The bridge is about 480 long, 107 m tall and was completed in 1907. There were restauration works in the last years, but there will have to be more in the following years. The brige was built of steel and it will have to be strengthened.



Out path led us downhill to river Wupper, flowing in the valley.



Parts of the soil are covered with anemones.



We crossed the river Wupper here.



Finally we reached Muengsten Bridge with a leisure park underneath it.





A lot of people were here, enjoying the lovely weather and the warmth of the sun.



Isn't this an impressive view, this bridge growing out of the forest?



The workshop of an artist blacksmith is situated here. He made some funny things, like the shark.



We took the bus back home, being a bit tired



Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
we were really shocked this morning - it was extremely cold outside, about 0°C!

At noontime it became a bit warmer, so we took a walk with Katja's nephew and her brother-in-law in Hohenhagen, a district of Remscheid. It is a housing area with access to woodland and a rural area. You can see the outskirts of the neighbour city Wuppertal on the first photo.



We saw the frist spring flowers



The A1 motorway is passing by. A terrible storm in 2007 destroyed large parts of the forest, so you can see the motorway nowadays.





We saw deer in the forest. We took a zoomed photo.



This is the housing area. In the background you can see the water tower in the city centre of Remscheid, about 3 km from here.



Later we went to Katja's relatives to let her ferrets play in the garden.

Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
we went to Wuppertal today to invite a friend for dinner.

Wuppertal ist one of the neighbour cities of Remscheid. One of the city’s greatest attractions is the suspended monorail (Schwebebahn), which was established in 1901. The tracks are 8 m above the streets and 12 m above the Wupper River. Here you can see one of 20 stations along the 13,3 km long route.





We took a walk through the shopping streets than. In the background you can see the historical city hall.





We went to an old quarter with lots of bars and restaurants than, Luisenviertel.



There are really narrow lanes.



We found the restaurant than, a Turkey restaurant.



We had a fantastic dinner here.

Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
in the early afternoon we went to Katja's sister to celebrate Easter with the whole family. There are cherry trees blooming at the station, a really lovely view.





So many delicous sweets!



Bye
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
today we visited a medieval castle in the neighbour city Solingen, Schloss Burg, It is situated high upon a hill above the River Wupper.



Schloss Burg was built in 1133 by Count Adolf I von Berg on a hill above the river Wupper.That's why this region is called "Bergisches Land". Many people believe that it's name refers to the landscape with hills and valleys. (For those who do not speak German: The German word for mountain or hill is "Berg", so many people think that the name "Bergisches Land" means "land of many hills" )

About a hundred years later it was enlarged by Count Engelberg II von Berg. This is the man on the horse in the courtyard.



In Thirty Years War (17th century) large parts of the castle were destroyed. It was rebuilt then, but it was used for industrial purposes for many years. In the end of the 19th century they began to rebuild it as it appears today.

In the castle courtyard you can find souvenir shops and shops whose owners are doing an "old" handcraft, for example handmade brushes, brooms, soap, lovely yarns and wooden knitting needles, toys like swords and helmets and much more.







The round tower was the powder tower, it was restored about two years ago.







When we walked back to the car, we saw some of those lovely half-timbered houses which were built in 17th century.





Bye for now
Buzz BlueJay

Hi Mummy,
today sayed good-bye to all my friends here in Germany and packed my souvenirs. I am on my way home now!



I hope I will be with you soon

Love
Buzz BlueJay

Hello hello!  I have a question!  Who made the silly rule that Blue Jays don't go south for the winter?
All my trees are bare and the flowers are gone.    Today we are having a snowstorm with maybe 8 inches of snow!  That is taller than me!  That is taller than me if I was standing on my own head! 
But I do look very pretty and colorful against the white snow, I so guess it isn't ALL bad.

Great! Great! Great!

I'm in Russia!

Hansel met me and we went to watch TV with Galiya apa's little son The cartoon made in Russia is called "Smeshariki" (a short version for funny balls)
The weather is rainy and chilly for summer, but everyone's content





Take care,
Your Buzz

PS: Galiya apa sends you a "hi" and a "thanks"