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Packer fans from Germany. Go, Pack, Go!
Flying back home from Frankfurt, today. Met these two German lads who are coming to the US on holy pilgrimage. They are headed to Lambeau Field for a Packers game. Cheeseheads are a worldwide fraternity.
Go Pack go!
Lufthansa Boeing 747-8 passenger planes parked in a row at the airport.
Here we go again. Yes, those are Boeing 747 passenger jets out there—a whole row of them. Currently, Germany’s Lufthansa is the world’s largest operator of these iconic old birds, keeping the “Queen of the Skies” alive in an era of twin-engine efficiency. (The other three carriers that still use these for passengers are Air China, Korean Air, and Rossiya Airlines.)
Did you know the original 747-100 was introduced way back in 1969? Boeing manufactured more than 1,500 of these jets over five decades. However, the era of the four-engine giant is fading; All American carriers officially abandoned the jumbo line in 2017.
I’m guessing Lufthansa keeps them alive for a variety of reasons. The 747’s high yield cabins maximize passenger numbers for long hauls. Its large belly bay means revenue is measured in freight as well as in passengers. And Lufthansa’s experience in developing specialized tooling and expertise means they can maintain their fleet via its subsidiary, Lufthansa Technik, without outsourcing. Those are all good reasons to stick with what they’ve got.
Today, only a few dozen 747s remain in service as passenger planes. The rest of the fleet has been scrapped or converted into freighters. Some have even more unusual second lives—like the Jumbo Stay Hotel at the Stockholm Arlanda Airport, where you can actually spend the night in a converted 747-212B. Personally, I can’t imagine it. After years of writhing in economy on long-haul flights, I would never choose to willingly sleep on a 747!
“Once I get you up there, where the air is rarefied
We'll just glide, starry-eyed
Once I get you up there, I'll be holding you so near
You may hear all angels cheer because we're together.”
Lyrics from “Come Fly with Me” by Sammy Cahn
Laugenstange kümmelbraten and kraut before 8:00 am will put hair on your chest. The good folk in Frankfurt, Germany, make pretty fair coffee too.
I pity the person sitting next to me on the next flight.
However, as my friend Dr Scott Caulley noted, that person probably ate two of these.
Kölner Dom, Riẞ F. One of the surviving medieval architectural drawings of the Cologne Cathedral.
Cathedrals remain top global tourist attractions by combining gravity-defying Gothic architecture with tangible, "living" history that offers a profound sense of connection to the past. Beyond their historical significance, these landmarks act as universal sanctuaries, providing visitors with a rare, quiet atmosphere for reflection in a chaotic world.
Travel with us to Köln, Germany, to investigate.
Click the panel below to view “Heart Holes: Some are God-shaped.”
To read more about the Köln Cathedral, start here: Structures of Hope.
A venator (specialized hunter) shown fighting a lioness in the arena (late 1st c AD). From Augusta Emerita (Mérida, Spain).
As a Roman citizen, Paul was legally protected from being sentenced to damnatio ad bestias (execution by wild animals), a punishment typically reserved for non-citizens or the lowest social classes. Consequently, his references to fighting beasts or being “delivered from the mouth of the lion” are usually considered as symbolic descriptions of surviving life-threatening riots and legal trials.
Click below to view our video tour, “Paul and the Beasts in the Amphitheater?”
View to the Trier Amphitheater today.
Built in the second century AD, the Trier Amphitheater is a remarkable relic of the Roman Empire's northern power, once seating up to 20,000 spectators for gladiatorial contests and animal hunts. Its unique design integrates a natural hillside into its structure, while the preserved subterranean cellars beneath the arena floor still reveal where prisoners and animals were held before their entry. Today, this UNESCO World Heritage site serves as a dramatic venue for historical reenactments and concerts, allowing visitors to walk the same vaulted tunnels used by ancient performers.
Click the panel below to view our video tour, “The Roman Amphitheater at Augusta Treverorum”
The main Romano-Germanic Museum building in Köln, Germany is closed for renovation. It sits in the shadow of the Cathedral.
While the main Romano-Germanic Museum building in Köln, Germany, remains closed for extensive renovations, you can currently visit its "best-of" exhibition at the Belgisches Haus (Belgian House) located at Cäcilienstraße 46 near Neumarkt. This interim location elegantly showcases a condensed selection of the museum's world-class artifacts, including its renowned collection of ancient Roman glassware and jewelry.
Click the panel below to view our video tour, “Köln’s Roman Germanic Museum: Inside the Belgian House Exhibition”
Here and there, as in this underground parking garage, Köln’s earliest remains emerge.
The history of Cologne goes back to the New Testament age, beginning in 38 BC as a Roman settlement for the Ubii tribe. Officially raised to the status of a Roman colony in AD 50 by Empress Agrippina the Younger, the city—then known as Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium—served as the administrative capital of Lower Germany. Today, this 2,000-year-old heritage is still “hidden in plain sight,” from the preserved Roman-Germanic Museum mosaics to the ancient sewer systems that still sit beneath the modern streets.
Click the panel below to view our video tour, “Roman Cologne: How Sweet it is!”
Riverbank of the Rhine near modern Cologne.
Long before the birth of modern-day France, the tribal confederations known as the Galli (or Celts) were both a formidable challenge and a source of intense fascination for the expanding Roman Empire. From the legendary ferocity of the chieftain Vercingetorix to the strategic genius of Julius Caesar, the clash of these two distinct cultures forever reshaped the map of Europe.
While the Romans often branded them as “barbarians,” they deeply respected the Gauls' sophisticated metalworking, fierce warrior culture, and complex social structures. Watch the video below to discover what the Romans truly knew—and feared—about the untamed tribes and rich territories across the Alps.
Click the panel below to view our video experience, “The Galli Guys in Roman Europe.”
The brilliance of Roman engineering is on full display in the throne room of Constantine the Great, known today as the Aula Palatina in Trier, Germany. Built around 310 AD, this massive brick basilica contains the largest single-room hall surviving from the ancient world, remarkably standing without the support of a single internal column. Its clever optical illusions, such as windows that decrease in size toward the apse, were expertly designed to make the hall appear longer and the Emperor even more monumental to those approaching his throne.
Today, this UNESCO World Heritage site serves as a powerful testament to the architectural mastery of the late Roman Empire, featuring walls over 3 meters thick and an interior height of 33 meters.
Click the link below to view “Constantine’s Throne Room in Trier, Germany.”
The Porta Nigra is the best preserved Roman city gate north of the Alps. It links the ancient past to today’s city.
Mark arrives in Trier and immediately dives into the local culture with a stop for a classic German-style breakfast. Surrounded by 2,000 years of history, there’s no better way to fuel up for a day of exploring Rome’s northern capital than with fresh local bread and a strong coffee. Watch the video below to join him for his first taste of Germany's oldest city!
Click the panel below to view the video, “G’Morgen from Trier. Coffee, please.”
A grilled German bratwurst with a side of vinegar-based potato salad, sliced radishes, and a bowl of spicy mustard.
I had to say goodbye to Germany, but I wasn't about to go without one final culinary salute. My parting meal? A perfectly grilled bratwurst served alongside Kartoffelsalat (a classic German-style potato salad).
This wasn't just a snack; it was a sensory experience. Loaded with onions and sharp radishes, and accompanied by a generous mustard bowl for heavy sausage-dipping, it was the kind of meal that makes a statement. Let’s just say between the radishes and the onions, neither I nor anyone within a five-mile radius will be forgetting this send-off anytime soon!
The train station in Aachen.
Even starting from the train station, it’s clear Aachen is something special. Best known as the final resting place of Charlemagne and a sobering site of heavy WWII combat, the city today feels peaceful, vibrant, and surprisingly lush.
Nestled into rolling forested hills, the landscape here is a bit more robust than the flatter stretches of Belgium. With hints of orange and yellow appearing in the trees, autumn is officially in the air. It’s a beautiful reminder that history—even the "bloody" parts—is eventually reclaimed by the quiet beauty of the seasons.
Look what my daughter found in the parking lot of her mechanic in Köln, Germany. I just love that girl!
You don’t have to go all the way to Germany or Saudi Arabia to find a sweet ride. Sometimes they are right around the corner. See here.
The awful happened.
Work on the Köln (Cologne) Cathedral sputtered and stalled. After 300 years of labor, this “structure of hope” outpaced its resources. It was unfinished, unfunded, and unroofed in places. The 25-meter wooden Domkran was idle atop of the South Steeple, an arm with no muscle. To make matters worse, the archives (read: building plans) were lost to French revolutionaries in 1794. The vision of a grand cathedral, conceived in the middle of the 13th century, was all but lost.
For those who are curious about the landscape of the biblical world, the Rhine River may seem to be a stretch, a reach, a foul ball. The Rhine (Grk Ρήνος, Lat Rhenus) is an unlikely entry in a Bible dictionary or atlas. It is unrecognized in the biblical text. And yet, this waterway and those who peopled its banks were known in the New Testament world, more by reputation than experience.
