Köln In Brief

The possibility of becoming truly acquainted with a city lies at the hands of many variables. A person can hold residence in a place forever and never quite gain a full grasp on its tone. The intended effect of an initial city plan is subjected, following conception, to the influence of all who pay a visit, either leaving a permanent park or passing through.

“The Stranger’s Path” as John Brinckerhoff Jackson describes it, is relative mostly to a town’s population. This path—its length, its depth of connection to history, its full realization—are intended to ease a traveler, typically a tourist, in gaining familiarity with a city or town and getting a sense of its essence. This path, Jackson asserts, generally begins with the bus or train station and ends with a city hall or the like, all along advertising “in crude form” the merits and amenities of the city. It becomes increasingly luxurious as it nears its end, a far cry from the poor establishments that surround the path’s starting point.

Köln Cathedral with Hauptbahnhof (at right)

Cologne, Germany, though, is a fine example of one such place that does not adhere to Jackson’s theory. Granted, he explicitly notes that “The Stranger’s Path” is markedly evident in American cities and towns, but Cologne exhibits a shockingly opposite effect from the one Jackson describes.

...en route...

The Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s national train system, runs entirely above ground. It is typical for a traveler to maintain full sight of a city through the process of approaching and entering the Hauptbanhof, or central train station. And when the traveler first exits Cologne’s Hauptbanhof, they are spat directly into the city’s main Platz, and at the foot of Cologne’s massive cathedral, the largest in the world.

Die Hohenzollernbrücke

It’s quite a sensation to be confronted with the structure that defines an entire city without having to go in search of it. Cologne Cathedral’s Gothic design is so overwhelming that Cologne immediately engulfs its travelers in its culture (or its main tourist attraction, depending on your take on life). The Platz is lined with Cologne’s signature bakeries, which flood the area with smells typical of Bavarian living. The cathedral’s bells resound frequently, and at great length and volume, contributing to a full immersion of the senses. Walk just a bit further, and the traveler meets the Hohenzollern Bridge, where the old train tracks still exist, interweaving in mass like lanyard strings.

The incredible succinctness and density of Cologne’s “Stranger’s Path,” in accordance with Jackson’s theory, is perhaps attributable to Cologne’s population, which is just under one million residents. It is undeniable, though, that it is of far greater influence on a traveler’s familiarity with a place to be thrown in than eased in, and in that way is Cologne’s “Stranger’s Path” not so strange at all.