Prettige Kerstdagen and Cologne DE

That’s how you say Merry Christmas in Dutch.  Of course as I write this I am no longer in Nederlands but neatly reabsorbed at my home in Florida, paying my yearly property taxes and homeowners insurance among other bills, refilling my fridge, replacing burned out lightbulbs. It’s warm and it hasn’t rained; opposite of the Netherlands, but I definitely enjoyed my time there.  I got my knees X-Rayed and a shot of cortisone in each one and I have an appt with an Orthopod in about a week.  All the things that make this holiday season so joyous and bright. I spent the day Saturday on my last weekend in Europe in Cologne with my new good friend Jania. (We both live in Pensacola and have known each other for some 15 years, but never hung out or socialized in the same circles, and it took Brunssum, Netherlands for us to become good friends!) My knees were aching but since I knew this was possibly my last chance to climb the stairs to the top of the Kölner Dom (Cologne Cathedral) belfry; 509 stone steps of the spiral staircase to a viewing platform about 322 ft above the ground. That’s 509 up and 509 down with each step being about 3 feet wide and several hundred people all doing the same thing. There was that and the Jewish archaeological site which was discovered a couple of years ago a few blocks from the Dom.  It is the oldest known Jewish settlement in Northern Europe.  Yep, they were just digging down to build a new Starbucks and found this whole city, complete with Mikve, Bakery and a Deli.  Okay not the deli but the other stuff is actually in pretty good shape for having been buried a thousand years. The Christmas markets were starting up and there was the smell of Glühwein, chocolate, bakeries, pine and for some reason bayberry aroma was everywhere, too. The bottom picture from inside the Dom is the famous "Adoration of the Magi" triptic by Stefan Lochner created around 1440 AD. By the time the sun started going down I was feeling like an old man, not so much in pain, but my knees were feeling weak (maybe it was the wein or bier, but I think not) so we went back to the house. I sure did enjoy Northern Europe. Next time I plan to be jumping and running.
Prettige Kerstdagen, Frohe Weihnachten, メリークリスマス, Mutlu Noeller, 메리 크리스마스, Joyeux Noël, Veselé Vánoce, Mele Kalikimaka, or however you say MERRY CHRISTMAS where you come from!