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Rheinpark on the right side of the Rhine
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Cologne is a »green« city. For each of its total of over one million inhabitants, it has 75 sq.m. of municipal park or garden, even close to the city centre: the Rheingarten in front of the Old Town, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring, Theodor-Heuss-Ring, Volksgarten, Blücherpark, Römerpark can be reached by most people in Cologne and visitors in just a couple of minutes.
Cable-car or boat make the trip to the Rheinpark alongside Koelnmesse into a special experience. The thermal baths, chair-lift and Tanzbrunnen invite you to linger a while at the site of the first Federal Garden Show.
Diagonally across the Rhine is the Zoo: with almost 7,000 animals it is regarded as one of the best-kept zoos in Germany. Particularly worth seeing are the new Elephant Park, the Ape House designed specifically to satisfy the animals' needs and the aquarium. Right next to the Zoo, a touch of fin de siecle nostalgia: Flora and Botanical Gardens with magnificent orchid cultures, palm house and dendrological treasures.
Anyone who prefers to see works of art by contemporary artists in a natural setting, will walk a little further to the Sculpture Park opened in 1997. It was initiated by the well-known collectors, the Stoffel family, and in its 25,000 sq.m. it displays around 30 works selected with an outstanding appreciation of art, each of which will remain in this park for two years, documenting the diversity of international sculpture. In the West of the city, the outer green belt extends for over 12 kilometres, with its old trees, endless walking and cycling paths, playgrounds and lawns for sunbathing, artistically designed ponds and canals and the large stadium.
In the North, The Fühlinger See (lake) provides ample opportunities for water sports and bathing. The 2.000 metre regatta course is the venue of numerous championships, including the World Rowing Championships. Longer walks in the woods in the South of the city are possible in the Forestry Garden with around 3,000 different plants and on the right bank of the Rhine at Gut Leidenhausen, the Groov recreation area in Porz, the Königsforst and the game parks in Brück and Dünnwald. |
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Overview
