All good things come to an end or so they say. I do not agree. I feel that good things last for ever. After the event ends, it stays in our memory, loved and cherished for many years to come.
The last day at Games Com was such an affair. Although we had seen all that was there to be seen, we wanted to go to the venue just one last time; to say good bye to the wonderful people, new friends, food vendors, the booth girls and people with ‘free hug’ signs on them! There was something about the convention that made us go there, day after day despite tired feet and weary bodies. It must be a geek thing or it might just be the love for things we like.
However, we didn’t want to get too attached to it and therefore Lazybones and I decided to take a break and roam around town a bit. We took it easy in the morning and woke up at a leisurely hour. Lunch was the next thing on the agenda and we had hoped to eat at a nice roadside café, preferably a steak lunch or something equally meaty. Rudolfplatz was the destination of choice with its variety of restaurants. What we hadn’t expected was that there would be roadside booths by EA, Nintendo, Singstar and a few others mingled with the smell of grilled meat and sausages (the Germans love their sausages). We came across a really nice place called Bar Cologne with lovely music and a good assortment of tables by the roadside complete with sunshine and all. But Mr Lazybones wasn’t satisfied with it and wanted to search for the ‘perfect’ place to have lunch. I am sure that if his girlfriend was with him, she would have punched him in the face. His usually lazy demeanour was changed for inexplicable reasons. I felt as if he had received a +20 Agility buff from somewhere. So off we trekked to Neumarkt searching for a good place to eat. In the meanwhile, I was getting increasingly impatient as I had to use the loo and all the walking wasn’t helping my cause. After a short break at Starbucks, we continued our quest. By this time the buff seemed to be wearing off and Tan started to get tired. In the end we ended up having lunch at Bar Cologne which had, by this time, become the ‘most suited place to eat’. Talk of changing goal posts eh ?
The meal was sumptuous, service excellent and the ambience fantastic. We were there for a long time, going slow on the food (no attacking this time) and taking in the atmosphere of the place, soaking in the sunshine and generally enjoying the crowd around us. As it often happens, a good meal and warm weather makes one sleepy and we decided to hurry back to the hotel in case the seats on the tram stations began to appear very comfortable and people started to take pity on us and drop a few coins our way. Tan had his hat so it wouldn’t be a problem collecting those Euro cents. The problem was that we were too well dressed to be mistaken for drunken tramps. One must keep in mind to dress appropriately if one wishes to make a few extra cents in cash in a foreign country!
I knew I had made a good decision when I reserved an extra day after the event. It has helped us wind down after the event and enjoy the sights the city has to offer. I don’t know about the rest of Germany but I have liked Cologne and I wouldn’t mind living here. The various sights, friendly people and a few choice places have left an indelible imprint on the heart and mind. I would love to return to the city, preferably with someone special. As I leave the place, I shall forever remember the wonderful time I have had here and will always look forward to returning someday; at least for the lake fountain behind our hotel in the hope of having another beautiful memory imprinted forever.
In a big prosperous country which is heavily mechanised, the simplicity of the city and its people has warmed my heart. It has left me wanting to be one among them. Who says good times have to come to an end? As time moves on, they continue to be as special as they ever were. In fact they get woven with other special moments to make a beautiful picture, a picture that lasts long after we are gone.
To Cologne and its people, I offer my thanks for being very good hosts.
The last day at Games Com was such an affair. Although we had seen all that was there to be seen, we wanted to go to the venue just one last time; to say good bye to the wonderful people, new friends, food vendors, the booth girls and people with ‘free hug’ signs on them! There was something about the convention that made us go there, day after day despite tired feet and weary bodies. It must be a geek thing or it might just be the love for things we like.
However, we didn’t want to get too attached to it and therefore Lazybones and I decided to take a break and roam around town a bit. We took it easy in the morning and woke up at a leisurely hour. Lunch was the next thing on the agenda and we had hoped to eat at a nice roadside café, preferably a steak lunch or something equally meaty. Rudolfplatz was the destination of choice with its variety of restaurants. What we hadn’t expected was that there would be roadside booths by EA, Nintendo, Singstar and a few others mingled with the smell of grilled meat and sausages (the Germans love their sausages). We came across a really nice place called Bar Cologne with lovely music and a good assortment of tables by the roadside complete with sunshine and all. But Mr Lazybones wasn’t satisfied with it and wanted to search for the ‘perfect’ place to have lunch. I am sure that if his girlfriend was with him, she would have punched him in the face. His usually lazy demeanour was changed for inexplicable reasons. I felt as if he had received a +20 Agility buff from somewhere. So off we trekked to Neumarkt searching for a good place to eat. In the meanwhile, I was getting increasingly impatient as I had to use the loo and all the walking wasn’t helping my cause. After a short break at Starbucks, we continued our quest. By this time the buff seemed to be wearing off and Tan started to get tired. In the end we ended up having lunch at Bar Cologne which had, by this time, become the ‘most suited place to eat’. Talk of changing goal posts eh ?
The meal was sumptuous, service excellent and the ambience fantastic. We were there for a long time, going slow on the food (no attacking this time) and taking in the atmosphere of the place, soaking in the sunshine and generally enjoying the crowd around us. As it often happens, a good meal and warm weather makes one sleepy and we decided to hurry back to the hotel in case the seats on the tram stations began to appear very comfortable and people started to take pity on us and drop a few coins our way. Tan had his hat so it wouldn’t be a problem collecting those Euro cents. The problem was that we were too well dressed to be mistaken for drunken tramps. One must keep in mind to dress appropriately if one wishes to make a few extra cents in cash in a foreign country!
I knew I had made a good decision when I reserved an extra day after the event. It has helped us wind down after the event and enjoy the sights the city has to offer. I don’t know about the rest of Germany but I have liked Cologne and I wouldn’t mind living here. The various sights, friendly people and a few choice places have left an indelible imprint on the heart and mind. I would love to return to the city, preferably with someone special. As I leave the place, I shall forever remember the wonderful time I have had here and will always look forward to returning someday; at least for the lake fountain behind our hotel in the hope of having another beautiful memory imprinted forever.
In a big prosperous country which is heavily mechanised, the simplicity of the city and its people has warmed my heart. It has left me wanting to be one among them. Who says good times have to come to an end? As time moves on, they continue to be as special as they ever were. In fact they get woven with other special moments to make a beautiful picture, a picture that lasts long after we are gone.
To Cologne and its people, I offer my thanks for being very good hosts.
really enjoyed reading your daily status updates bro. Painted a pretty picture.. - slarti
ReplyDeletethanks man.. you ought to have been there.. would have been a lotta fun... maybe next year
ReplyDelete