I wish we were there - it's many years since I last visited Colonia. Appropriately I was visiting a company that makes Kölnisch Wasser at the time - my hosts were good enough to entertain this poor misplaced Brit, and introduced me to German food and drink - pig products and beer.

Exactly my feeling. I remember Köln particularly for a ferocious row I had with my then girlfriend during Karneval. So ferocious it attracted the attention of concerned onlookers (Ruf die Bullen?) But, you know, getting heated, getting heated up, it ended happily and to some applause. Street theatre: The Lovers Quarrel & Make Up :-)

Wishing I there was also.

I don't know how you planned the rest of your trip, DortCon starts on Saturday, but if you have any spare time, you could try one of Köln's museum.

For the ones into Ancient history, there is the RGM quite close to the Dom

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romano-Germanic_Museum

for modern art, there is the Museum Ludwig

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_Ludwig

OK, having mentioned the usual suspects, I looked at the German wikipedia for somewhat more unusual things...

The Museum for Applied Art has a collection on articles of everyday life subject to art or design

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_für_Angewandte_Kunst_(Cologne)

and the DOMID is concerned with German migration history

http://www.domid.org/index-en.html

The RGM is, from my somewhat ancient recollection, pretty impressive. I remember gold and swastikas. (Such a shame such a simple symbol has been ruined indefinitely.)

Prost!

Hope our host enjoys his travels!

So,anyone seen this story about Lake Vostok yet? Wondering what other undiscovered critters are lurking in the deep, deep, cold waters...

I remember gold and swastikas.

In the cellar, right? If so, they might even be visible from the outside. For everybody else, IIRC in the cellar of the RGM there is the floor from a Roman villa in the vicinity, decorated wirg interlocking symbols usually associated with Indian religions. And very sorry excuses for human beings.

Incidentally, I was not that sure if that was in Köln or in Xanten, another old Roman city in Germany. BTW, IIRC in one of those there was a collection of erotic Ancient oil lamps, hey, I was just touching puberty when I was last visiting.

BTW, there was a swastika on the clothes of a soldier in a reconstruction about Dura-Europos

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dura-Europos

As there was also a synagogue in Dura-Europos, with paintings of biblical scenes similar to later Christian ones[1], BTW, there is some potential for strange sights to be had in about 250 AD...

(Such a shame such a simple symbol has been ruined indefinitely.)

Well, maybe not indefinitely, but I guess it will be a few hundred years. For non-Indians, that is, for Indians it's still quite common.

[1] The main difference to the neighbouring church in this regard is the Christian paintings are much more crudely done.

You can see some photos, including the mosaic in question, at this site:

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/germany/cologne-roman-museum-photos/

Please note that according to the photo, these are not the usual right- but left-facing swastikas, or maybe sauwastikas[1]:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauwastika

Now that one is a favourite with all conspiracy nuts and esoterists, but as the article explains, the idea of one forn being good and the other evil is mistaken.

[1] wiki explains this as a vrddhi, a form of apophony; now my Sanskrit is virtually non-existent, but if I use the rules from http://www.danam.co.uk/Sanskrit/Sanskrit%20Introductory/10%20Lesson.pdf I get something like sava-, not sauva-. It's likely to be my mistake, still...

Regarding the swastika: it's all over the place in Korea too. I was told it symbolized a place where Buddhists meet. You see it not so much in big old temples but more in like seedy storefront deals.

That's an added villainy of villains. Anything associated with them, even the good or innocent, becomes spoiled. They manage thus to reach out from the grave for one last spiteful punch.

For instance, I was born with a hare lip, which was promptly sewed up, but there's a small scar there. Can I cover it up with a small moustache? NO! It's all or nothing. Thanks a lot, Hitler.