Exploring Germany

Mario and I enjoyed a few days away and crossed a few places off our list! Our first stop was the city of Cologne or Köln. The Cologne Cathedral is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with construction starting around 1248. The cathedral has been on my must visit list since we arrive, so I was excited to finally  see it. After exploring we drove about an hour to our hotel in Essen.

The next morning, we headed towards Externsteine which is located in Horn-Bad Meinberg in Lippe which was about 2 hours from our hotel. According to their website, https://www.externsteine-info.de/ the rock formation are 40 meters high. This area was once part of a sea about 130 million years ago and from pressure from the Earth’s crust mountain ranges were formed and then a stream eroded creating the rocks we see today. Also archaeological excavations showed inhabitation live here during the 10-13th centuries. There are many hiking trails surrounded the rock formations and for a small entrance fee you can climb to the top of the rocks. 

It was starting to rain, so we decided not to explore any of the trails. From there we headed towards Kassel which is home to the Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe and the Grimm Brothers. The park is considered Europe’s Largest Mountain park which is known for the Hercules statue and water games which run from May 1 to Oct 3 on specific days. When standing at the base of the Hercules statue you have a wonderful view of the city beyond.

We arrive about an hour before the water games were suppose to turn on. We found parking on top of the hill and slowly made our way to the bottom of the fountain. We then found a bench and waited for the show to begin. I have always love waterfalls and fountains and this was another place which has been on my list to visit. The water game didn’t disappoint. Once the water filled the whole fountain we climbed back up along the rushing water and walk towards  the car. There are other areas that fill up with water but we didn't walk and see them. From there we drove into the heart of Kassel to find the statue of the Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm who were born in Kassel and spent time there as adults.

​From there we drove to Frankfurt where we spent the night. After checking in we walked around the area and for being a Sunday  many people were out. We left the next morning and heading home.