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 di...