The Rhine flows from the south to the north in north-western Germany, and links Cologne to the other city of Düsseldorf 40 km to the north. These two cities have the Rhine as a common thread and are actually not too far apart, but culturally they can be rather distant. Traditionally they tended to view each other with disdain and maintain a strong cultural boundary in between. They speak completely different dialects, and the famous Cologne beer Kölsch is nowhere to be seen in Düsseldorf. Some of my Munich colleagues even said that the motorway signs in either city would not show directions to the other, but I haven’t had time to check if it were indeed true! Most interestingly, the lay-outs of the two cities are mirror images of each other; while the Old Town of Cologne lies on the west of the Rhine and the eastern river bank is a promenade, Düsseldorf is the opposite with the Old Town on the east and some meadows on the western river bank. Perhaps this is how both places sought to distinguish themselves in the first place!
萊茵河在德國西北由南至北而流，把科隆和北面40公里外的另一個城市杜塞爾多夫連接起來。兩市雖一水相承，且距離不遠，但差異頗大，科隆人和杜塞爾多夫人的關係，傳統上屬於至老死而不相往來那種，大家互相瞧不起對方，方言也大不同，科隆地道啤酒Kölsch在杜塞爾多夫近乎稍聲匿跡，甚至據說大家的公路指示牌都不會標示對方城市呢，不過此行我可沒空查證了。最有趣的還是這兩個城市的佈局：科隆的舊城區位於河的西面，對岸是河濱長廊，杜塞爾多夫則剛好相反，舊城區位於河的東面，對岸是草坪一片，與科隆相映成趣！
It took me an hour to travel from Cologne to Düsseldorf by train, and at the central railway station in Düsseldorf I was greeted by my friend and her husband. My friend is actually a former colleague of mine and has moved to Düsseldorf for less than a year. After lunch she and her husband took me on a stroll around the Old Town. We had good long chats along the way, and inevitably our topic turned quite often to Munich. My friend was reminiscing a lot about the good sides of Munich, such as how Munich was less boring because it was a larger city, and how the scenery around Munich was more beautiful because of the lakes and mountains nearby. I did understand why she had those thoughts. We were definitely not rushing through the Old Town of Düsseldorf, but the places worth visiting were in fact not that many and can be finished in a short time. The region to which Düsseldorf belongs is actually flat in terrain and has the highest population density in Germany. There isn’t too much nature or rural area to speak of in that region, let alone mountains and lakes.
我從科隆坐一小時火車便來到杜塞爾多夫，朋友和她的老公在火車總站迎接，該朋友是老同事，在杜塞爾多夫還不夠一年。午飯後她和老公帶我到舊城區逛逛，大家邊逛邊聊，少不了談到慕尼黑，我這個老同事不時便說她如何想念慕尼黑，說慕尼黑有多好，例如慕尼黑始終是個大城市，沒那麼悶，而且慕尼黑附近有山有水，自然景色比較漂亮。我也明白她的想法：我們逛舊城區已經不算走馬看花，但值得一看的地方真的很快便逛完，而杜塞爾多夫所屬的地區，地勢平坦，而且是全德國人口密度最高的地區，莫說沒有湖光山色，城市與城市之間的農地和自然地帶也不多，風光難免是單調一點。
We treated ourselves to a good dinner of pork knuckle, and needed some time to let our meals digest properly. I also needed a way to kill time until my overnight to Munich in 4 hours’ time, so we decided to go for a walk along the Rhine. The river was indeed a dynamic place and the promenade was filled up despite its great width. It was also a fun place with some many interesting things to be done. There was an athletics track inviting children to go for a sprinting or cycling race, while next to it a group of people were dancing salsa to some lively music. I wouldn’t know if it was a dancing lesson or an open activity, but it was such a rare scene in Germany to see large congregation of people dancing to some loud music in public. This is how a public place should be: it should be energetic and it should belong to the people.
晚飯由老同事倆帶我吃一頓烤豬蹄，吃得很暢快，之後得消化一下，而且離當晚我往慕尼黑的火車還有四小時左右，我們便沿萊茵河散步消磨時間。河畔可真生氣盅然，沿河的走廊再寬也擠滿了人，最特別的是河畔有處劃了一條賽跑道，讓小孩賽跑或騎腳踏車，旁邊則有一班人跳西班牙式salsa舞，究竟是上課或公開活動我就不知道，但在響徹河畔的樂聲中有這麼大群人翩翩起舞，在德國是難得一見的景象，令河畔生色不少，也令我覺得這個河畔是一片真真正正開放的天地。
My former colleague mentioned that she had seen sheep by the river some time before and wanted to find out what it was really about. So we crossed the river at the Rheinkniebrücke bridge and reached the meadows on the opposite banks. We could already see many white dots against the green pastures from afar on the bridge, and indeed there were hundreds of sheep grazing in the meadows on closer look. How would have thought that such typical rural landscape could exist in the middle of a city, against a somewhat incongruous backdrop of swanky new buildings and a tall TV tower? The river bank enjoyed tranquility away from the main crowd and noise in the city, apart from the odd passers-by and the intermittent salsa dancing music that made its way across the water. It actually felt like a ramble in the countryside as we made our way through the slightly tall grass away from the herd to the next bridge. We paused to take a look of the Old Town opposite us, and in the reflexion of the evening sun the Old Town was showing its most graceful and elegant side. My former colleague couldn’t help but say that it was the most beautiful facet of Düsseldorf that she had seen since moving there!
老同事說從前好像在河畔見過羊，想探個究竟，我們便橫跨Rheinkniebrücke橋到河對岸的大草坪。在橋中央我們已離遠看到草坪上有很多白色一點點，再走近一點就讓我們看到幾百頭羊，規模有如郊外的大牧場，但背景是高聳的電視塔和建築新穎的大廈，誰會想到在市中央會放這麼多羊，彷如把郊野搬到市區來？這邊河畔人跡罕至，除了對岸跳舞的樂聲還隱約可聞外，再沒有其他雜聲，我們踏著有點長的草沿河而行，感覺竟也有點像郊遊。近距看過羊群後，我們前往下一道橋，途中抬頭望對岸舊城區，在夕陽的餘暉下展示其古雅的風貌，老同事不禁說，沒想到杜塞爾多夫原來也那麼漂亮，那次終於讓她看到杜塞爾多夫最美的一面了！
Sometimes the best sides of a place can only be found off the beaten track but are neglected because we all obstinately stick to our familiar routes. They are there to be discovered, treasured and savoured by those who would dare to venture out of their comfort zones.
人往往祇顧走熟悉的路，忽略了一個城市的其他面貌，而最美好的一面，正有待願意另僻新徑的人來發掘、所賞、細味。
萊茵河在德國西北由南至北而流，把科隆和北面40公里外的另一個城市杜塞爾多夫連接起來。兩市雖一水相承，且距離不遠，但差異頗大，科隆人和杜塞爾多夫人的關係，傳統上屬於至老死而不相往來那種，大家互相瞧不起對方，方言也大不同，科隆地道啤酒Kölsch在杜塞爾多夫近乎稍聲匿跡，甚至據說大家的公路指示牌都不會標示對方城市呢，不過此行我可沒空查證了。最有趣的還是這兩個城市的佈局：科隆的舊城區位於河的西面，對岸是河濱長廊，杜塞爾多夫則剛好相反，舊城區位於河的東面，對岸是草坪一片，與科隆相映成趣！
The Rhine at Düsseldorf 杜塞爾多夫的萊茵河
It took me an hour to travel from Cologne to Düsseldorf by train, and at the central railway station in Düsseldorf I was greeted by my friend and her husband. My friend is actually a former colleague of mine and has moved to Düsseldorf for less than a year. After lunch she and her husband took me on a stroll around the Old Town. We had good long chats along the way, and inevitably our topic turned quite often to Munich. My friend was reminiscing a lot about the good sides of Munich, such as how Munich was less boring because it was a larger city, and how the scenery around Munich was more beautiful because of the lakes and mountains nearby. I did understand why she had those thoughts. We were definitely not rushing through the Old Town of Düsseldorf, but the places worth visiting were in fact not that many and can be finished in a short time. The region to which Düsseldorf belongs is actually flat in terrain and has the highest population density in Germany. There isn’t too much nature or rural area to speak of in that region, let alone mountains and lakes.
我從科隆坐一小時火車便來到杜塞爾多夫，朋友和她的老公在火車總站迎接，該朋友是老同事，在杜塞爾多夫還不夠一年。午飯後她和老公帶我到舊城區逛逛，大家邊逛邊聊，少不了談到慕尼黑，我這個老同事不時便說她如何想念慕尼黑，說慕尼黑有多好，例如慕尼黑始終是個大城市，沒那麼悶，而且慕尼黑附近有山有水，自然景色比較漂亮。我也明白她的想法：我們逛舊城區已經不算走馬看花，但值得一看的地方真的很快便逛完，而杜塞爾多夫所屬的地區，地勢平坦，而且是全德國人口密度最高的地區，莫說沒有湖光山色，城市與城市之間的農地和自然地帶也不多，風光難免是單調一點。
Marktplatz (left) and Town Hall (below)
市集廣場（左）及市政廳（下）
The tower of Schifffahrtmuseum (Maritime Museum) 海事博物館的塔
Hofgarten opposite to Tonhalle concert hall Tonhalle演奏館對面的Hofgarten
The waterway along Königsallee 沿Königsallee的水道
Static art of different kinds 不同的靜止藝術
We treated ourselves to a good dinner of pork knuckle, and needed some time to let our meals digest properly. I also needed a way to kill time until my overnight to Munich in 4 hours’ time, so we decided to go for a walk along the Rhine. The river was indeed a dynamic place and the promenade was filled up despite its great width. It was also a fun place with some many interesting things to be done. There was an athletics track inviting children to go for a sprinting or cycling race, while next to it a group of people were dancing salsa to some lively music. I wouldn’t know if it was a dancing lesson or an open activity, but it was such a rare scene in Germany to see large congregation of people dancing to some loud music in public. This is how a public place should be: it should be energetic and it should belong to the people.
晚飯由老同事倆帶我吃一頓烤豬蹄，吃得很暢快，之後得消化一下，而且離當晚我往慕尼黑的火車還有四小時左右，我們便沿萊茵河散步消磨時間。河畔可真生氣盅然，沿河的走廊再寬也擠滿了人，最特別的是河畔有處劃了一條賽跑道，讓小孩賽跑或騎腳踏車，旁邊則有一班人跳西班牙式salsa舞，究竟是上課或公開活動我就不知道，但在響徹河畔的樂聲中有這麼大群人翩翩起舞，在德國是難得一見的景象，令河畔生色不少，也令我覺得這個河畔是一片真真正正開放的天地。
A fun place for all by the Rhine 河畔各自各精彩
My former colleague mentioned that she had seen sheep by the river some time before and wanted to find out what it was really about. So we crossed the river at the Rheinkniebrücke bridge and reached the meadows on the opposite banks. We could already see many white dots against the green pastures from afar on the bridge, and indeed there were hundreds of sheep grazing in the meadows on closer look. How would have thought that such typical rural landscape could exist in the middle of a city, against a somewhat incongruous backdrop of swanky new buildings and a tall TV tower? The river bank enjoyed tranquility away from the main crowd and noise in the city, apart from the odd passers-by and the intermittent salsa dancing music that made its way across the water. It actually felt like a ramble in the countryside as we made our way through the slightly tall grass away from the herd to the next bridge. We paused to take a look of the Old Town opposite us, and in the reflexion of the evening sun the Old Town was showing its most graceful and elegant side. My former colleague couldn’t help but say that it was the most beautiful facet of Düsseldorf that she had seen since moving there!
老同事說從前好像在河畔見過羊，想探個究竟，我們便橫跨Rheinkniebrücke橋到河對岸的大草坪。在橋中央我們已離遠看到草坪上有很多白色一點點，再走近一點就讓我們看到幾百頭羊，規模有如郊外的大牧場，但背景是高聳的電視塔和建築新穎的大廈，誰會想到在市中央會放這麼多羊，彷如把郊野搬到市區來？這邊河畔人跡罕至，除了對岸跳舞的樂聲還隱約可聞外，再沒有其他雜聲，我們踏著有點長的草沿河而行，感覺竟也有點像郊遊。近距看過羊群後，我們前往下一道橋，途中抬頭望對岸舊城區，在夕陽的餘暉下展示其古雅的風貌，老同事不禁說，沒想到杜塞爾多夫原來也那麼漂亮，那次終於讓她看到杜塞爾多夫最美的一面了！
Who has moved the countryside to the middle of Düsseldorf?
誰把郊野搬到杜塞爾多夫市中心了？
Sometimes the best sides of a place can only be found off the beaten track but are neglected because we all obstinately stick to our familiar routes. They are there to be discovered, treasured and savoured by those who would dare to venture out of their comfort zones.
人往往祇顧走熟悉的路，忽略了一個城市的其他面貌，而最美好的一面，正有待願意另僻新徑的人來發掘、所賞、細味。
Düsseldorf saved its best till last! (Sorry I could have done better with this panorama.)
不到夕陽西下也不知杜塞爾多夫之美！（祇可惜這幅拚圖實在做得不好。）
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