* * * Short(er) version of this available here. * * *

After being in Poland, I was back with Pamela at last, (I'd rather missed her.) I missed her so much, that I went to stay with her for the whole week. (I know that this seems like an obvious thing to do, but you don't understand that the place she lives... is hot, and small, and in a dull, dull, boring little town.) But I had to go anyhow, just to have the evenings with her.

So... I spent one day in Köln, taking pictures of a graveyard there, and walking around the city, and buying a couple of pairs of new shoes. I then spent a couple of days... doing nothing much at all, and then going out in the afternoon for a walk to the store, and getting something to cook for the evening. It was only on Friday that I again got myself motivated, and went into Köln again. My plan was this: go with Pamela to her workplace, (where there is at least a train station near by; the place where she lives doesn't even have that.) I had a piece of the Birthday cake I'd made her, (Haaaappy birthday to HEEEEERRRRR!) and then went to get the train to Köln. And then my day started to go all wrong...

I realized that I'd forgotten to bring the negatives with me, to get reprints of a few pictures, (which the photo place had completely screwed up.) -But I would feel to stupid: going back, after I'd said goodbye to Pamela, and her boss, and her working colleague... so I left it.

Then I found out that there were no trains at all from the station: they were replacing the tracks. But there was a bus that left every half hour, which would take me to the next train station, (where they still had tracks for the trains to run on.)

So I started looking at how to buy a ticket. I take the train often enough that I know how to buy a train ticket... normally. But when travelling within a short distance from a large city... it's counted as regional transit -and a totally different system is used. For one thing, I can't use my 50% train card, (50% off all tickets.) For another thing, they have to be bought with a different machine, which works in a completely different way.

Anyhow, I once had this same problem, (getting a regional ticket,) going from Lüneburg to Hamburg. -but I discovered that if I pretended to be coming from a station 20 km further away, then it wouldn't be Regional Transit, and I could use my 50% card... and in the end, save 20 or 30 percent of the cost. Well, I thought I could do the same thing now, going to Köln.

Unfortunately... the only machine for train tickets was facing into the sun. So I could only read about two letters a second, shading them with my hands, and trying to have my head at the right angle.

And unfortunately, I had to walk half way down the platform, to see the plan, to get names of cities a bit farther away, where my trick might work.

And unfortunately, this sun, which made the touch screen so hard to see, was also rather hot, and it wasn't the most comfortable weather.

And Unfortunately, when I got sick of fighting with the machine, and asked the lady working in the small store there, (who could only sell Regional tickets,) where a city was OUTSIDE of the nearby region, she didn't understand my meaning, and told me the last cities WITHIN that region.

And unfortunately, when I at last found out which city I wanted to say I was travelling from, the machine told me that I had to go inside to buy the ticket, (I think this was because it had to be partly with this special bus.)

And unfortunately, the place I had to go inside... was the train station I SAID I was combing from, not the train station I was at; The one I was at, could only sell tickets which started there.

And unfortunately, this THERE which I had been at, (for nearly an hour now,) was just outside the nearest near zone, so instead of costing 4 euros, it would cost 6.

And then, a lady who'd been sitting there for some time, realised that she had to take a bus. And she had a nice little fit, and went half into hysterics at the train workers there. She included me in her fit as well: though I'm not sure if she was making a point to them: "look! This poor man has been waiting around all this time as well! Why didn't you tell us!?!?" -or perhaps it was directed AT me: "Look! Why have you been waiting around this whole time as well? Why didn't you tell me!!!"

Anyhow, I'd gotten sick of the whole thing, and didn't want to listen to this lady, and didn't want to try explaining to anyone, and didn't want to be around anyone. So I thought I'd take a good long walk to cool off. So that's what I did.

I was so stubborn though, and so fed up with my failed attempt, that I soon decided to walk all the way to the next station, and take the train from there. (and thereby save the two euros. -and beat the system. -and feel much calmed and better. -and have something to do. -and see if I could find the trail which I knew must go somehow from Pamela's work towards her home.)

This walk took me then through fields, forests, along the edge of a quarry. I saw ant nests... (not that exciting, I know,) horses in fields, and a number of hawks, in and above a tree beside the path. Within an hour, or an hour and a half, I got to the town of Erftstadt. I felt nice then, but a bit thirsty, so I went to a grocery store for something to drink. I also asked about where Erftstadt Train station was. And that's when I had yet another surprise:

Erftstadt train station isn't in the centre of Erftstadt at all; it was in a small adjoining town. Naturally, the bus that goes to the train station had just left, so I would have to wait an hour for the next one. I'd seen a sign though, which said that this town was only three km away... so I didn't stay and wait for this bus. I kept walking. -and walking. and got to this town, and asked about the train station.

Which of course, wasn't IN this town at all, but just outside of it. -The far side from where I was.

To finish this story, I can tell you that three hours after I left the first train station, I got on the actual train, and went to Köln. And my day there was then somewhat shorter than I'd at first thought it would be.

I went to the Cathedral, looked all around inside, and then went up the bell tower. It was a fantastic view, but not of anything fantastic. -The city of Köln isn't... that interesting to look at from the air. But I enjoyed the view for the view it's self. (And I have to admit that the train bridge across the river was pleasing to look at.) The tower it's self it what I enjoyed the most. And the bells were impressive too. I waited around by the bells for 14 minutes, so that I could hear them ring the hour. (Oh goodness me, but it was... intense.)

Ummm... it was then that I went to my absolute favourite Asian store in Germany, to buy some spices, some snacks, and to pick up a large Styrofoam box. And if that doesn't need some clarification, I don't know what does. -But that will only come with my next entry. And that entry will come in just a second, because all that's left to write for this day, is that I got picked up by Pamela, and we went to Detmold. That's it.