c) Cologne and Gummersbach in Germany

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    Dear Participants

    Millions of people come to Cologne every year to see the city and its surroundings. Most of them visit the famous events like "Karneval" or "Weihnachtsmarkt" as well as the big trade fairs. So join us on a tour of the city and follow the guide to Gummersbach and the region of Oberberg.

     

     

     

    1. The Cologne Cathedral

       

     The Cologne Cathedral is a Gothic Cathedral and a Roman Catholic church in Cologne,Germany.It is recognized as a world cultural heritage site and the landmark of Cologne. It is 157.4 meters high and the second tallest church in Europe after the Ulm Minster.

    It is Germany´s most visited landmark and attracts 20,000 people a day.The Cologne Cathedral is near the Cologne central station.You can also visit the river Rhine and book boat trips around here.

     The Shrine of the Biblical Magi known from the Christmas story is a big urn which contains the magi's bones. It is considered the high point of Mosan art and the largest reliquary in the western world. A reliquary is a religious item. It has attracted thousands of pilgrims.

    2.The Hohenzollernbrücke

    You can walk across the bridge and have a fantastic view of the Rhine. The bridge is important for trains, because it leads to Cologne main station. For many people the bridge is called “Bridge of Love”, as you can fix locks with your own and your partner´s name and throw the key into the Rhine, which is believed to make your relationship last forever. In the picture you can see that  thousands of lovers have already fixed their locks.

                                               

    3. Cologne Theatre Scene

    The Cologne Theatre scene is very rich in variety. There you can find traditional theatres, political cabinets, comedy plays and much more. For someone who loves theatre, Cologne is the right place.

    The three official theatres in Cologne are the “Kölner Schauspielhaus”, the “Hänneschen-Theater” and the Cologne Opera. Besides, there are a lot of free stages that are an important part of the artistic culture in Cologne. One of the most popular is the “Volkstheater Millowitsch” which was opened in 1894. Another one is the Musical Dome that is located right next to the Rhine. Cologne also has some magnificent cabarets like the “Senftöpchen” and the “COMEDIA Theater”.

     

    4.

    LANXESS ARENA

     

    The Lanxess Arena in Cologne,Germany is the biggest multifunctional arena in Germany and it is very popular venue. Its total area is 84.000 m² and it gives room to a maximum of 20.000 people. In the arena big concerts, handball and icehockey matches and other shows take place. The concerts are by acts like Rihanna, Justin Bieber, David Guetta, Madonna and Macklemore.

    5.                                                        Schloss Homburg

    It is a castle about 50 kilometres east of Cologne. It includes a museum featuring an exhibition of the local environment and typical habitats, the flora and fauna of our area and how it changed over the years. A highlight exhibition shows the knights culture. You can see the suit armour and on the basis of the armour you can recognize how small the knights were in the past. They focus on the interests of all ages so the themes of the museum are really fascinating for all visitors.

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    6. Kölnmesse (Cologne trade fairs)

    The exhibition centre was founded in 1924. The exhibitions take place on the fifth biggest exhibition ground of the world. The trade fairs are held for business people but also for interested visitors.

    About 340.000 visitors annually go to the trade fairs. Overall there are 80 trade fairs.


     

    The Cologne trade fairs

     

    7. Cologne Karneval

    Karneval

     

    The Carnival session or the "fifth season" is officially opened on the "eleventh in the eleventh" (November 11), at 11.11 o'clock"Eleven eleven" by the Cologne triumvirate at the places called "Alter Markt" and "Heumarkt" with performances before several thousand spectators. A number of groups and carnival musicians are present. The number ofactivities increases step by step: after peaceful advent and Christmas time the Karnevalssitzungen and balls starting new year with performances by handmade speakers and dance and music groups. Early January is the proclamation of the Prince.

    On Thursday before Ash Wednesday, the day of the Women's Carnival,  the Carnival is also opened at 11:11 o´clock. From this point on the revelers celebrate in the pubs and on the streets until Tuesday evening. On Carnival Sunday the “Kölner Schull and  Veedelszöch”, small parades, take place. The big Rose Monday Parade is the highlight of the season. It features floats with topical themes.http://www.pfarrjugend-koefering.de/media/fasching/session2011/funkenmariechen.jpg

     

    8. Phantasialand

     

    Phantasialand is a famous theme park in Cologne. It includes a lot of rollercoasters, waterslides, carousels and different shows like street entertainment, theatres and 3D movies.

     “Colorado” is one of the most famous rollercoasters in Phantasialand. The roller coaster has a touch of western style. Michael Jackson officially opened the roller coaster on May 11 in 1996 and baptized it “Colorado Adventure – The Michael Jackson Thrill Ride “

     

    ”Black Mamba” is an inverted roller coaster. The ride is placed in the area called “Deep in Africa” and is named after the snake species in Africa.  One ride on the roller coaster lasts only 47 seconds with a speed of 80 km/h.

    That’s the “winterdream” in Phantasialand. This is a season attraction where you can ice skate, drink hot chocolate and watch some special winter shows with light effects. At the end of the day the highlights of the “winterdream” are the fireworks.

    9. Gummersbach

    Gummersbach is a town of 50.000 inhabitants. You can visit old buildings, which tell you something about the history of Gummersbach. For example there is the old water mill or some old towers, which give you a wonderful view over the town, also it's a district town with two big colleges. One is a commercial college (ours) the second one is industrial vocational college.

     

    If you want to buy something you can go to the big new shopping center and if you want to go swimming with your friends, there is a well-known indoor- pool called Gumbala. You also have the opportunity to go camping, sailing, fishing or wandering too at the Aggertalsperre. The Aggertalsperre is a reseoir between the towns Gummersbach, Bergneustadt and Mainerzhagen. The artificial lake is placed in the area called Oberbergisches Land.  If you are interested in sports the town offers about 25 different activities.

     

                                     

    "Schwalbe Arena" in Gummersbach                                                                                                 View of Gummersbach

     

    10.Gamescom in Cologne

    The “Gamescom” is the biggest gaming trade fair event in the world.

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    Since 2008 it has taken place in Cologne on the big premises of the Cologne Trade Fair (Köln Messe).

    With an average of 300,000 to 450,000 visitors it is the most visited game fair. The Gamescom takes a week in a set period in August.

    On a space of over 180,000 m²  there are a lot of game studios and producers like Ubisoft, 2k Games, Blizzard, Electronic Arts and a lot of more!

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    At the booths you can play some games before the release date like the new FIFA or Call of Duty.

    One of the special events at the Gamescom is the “Blizzard Costume Contest” that is presented by Blizzard, where a lot of fans of World of Warcraft or Diablo dress up as some of their favorite characters of the games.

    There are also a lots of booths presenting the newest gaming equipment like PCs, HD-Screens or graphic processors and a lot of other hardware.