retiredmartin

March 2026. Cologne.

A final Cologne post (promise) as Mrs RM gets to tick her tourist essentials by the waterfront,

including the Lindt chocolate museum (not as much free stuff as Cadbury world) and the Kranhäuser im Rheinauhafen,

a weird modernist housing estate/office complex where you’d expect to see craft bars there’s a cafe called “Coffice” (coffee/office, geddit ?).

Untappd comes to the rescue, finding us Zappes Süd in the Stollwerck, a community venue with gigs and art and a beer festival and burgers. Great burgers (and salads).

The folk in the beer garden look just like the ones in the Zappes advert.

Time for a shandy.

Nope.

Mrs RM gets a pic of the mustard museum on the way back to the station, we’re at the airport an hour earlier, and home in Stansted by nine.

The boys are on the Manchester flight, which decides to be 3 hours late. I’d normally say the sun shines on the righteous but that would be mean.

Anyway, I’ll leave you with those Cologne pub scores.

Gaffel am Dom ***

Sion ****

Lommerzheim (Lommies) *****

Sunner in Walfisch ****

Pfaffen ****

Kupferhut, Mulheim *****

Rhein Hotel St. Martin **