The ale of two cities
Dusseldorf and Cologne are fierce rivals when it comes to history, sports, carnivals, and even beer. Hamish McNeilly reflects on this rivalry by sampling a few ales from both.
‘‘Ich bin eine Dusseldorfer’’ goes down a treat in a Dusseldorf bar, but maybe not so in Cologne. Having exhausted my third form German for the sake of a cheap laugh, it is time to investigate why these cities are famous rivals.
Together they sound like an upmarket skin care product, but the truth is Dusseldorf and Cologne (or Cologne and Dusseldorf) each argue they smell better than the other. And both have compelling cases. But first the boring stuff. Dusseldorf (population: 605,000) is Germany’s seventh largest city and the capital of Germany’s most populous state, North RhineWestphalia.
Cologne (population: 1.04 million) is the state’s largest city and the country’s fourth behind Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich. It is also Germany’s oldest city.
Cologne is a working-class city that can trace its proud history to Roman times, whereas Dusseldorf rose to prominence during the Industrial Revolution. And now for the fun stuff. Both cities may be based on the Rhine, but are divided by sport, politics, money, a carnival and, of course, beer. In a country where lagers dominate, both cities produce top-fermented ales, but only Cologne’s Kolsch, a refreshing lightly hopped ale, is protected by the European Union. It certainly goes well with the local favourite; black pudding, mashed potatoes, fried onions, and apple sauce.
In contrast, Dusseldorf’s beer of choice is Altbier, a coppercoloured bitter ale. Altbier is available in Dusseldorf’s 250 bars and restaurants packed into the tiny area of Altstadt (old city), affectionately known as the ‘‘longest bar in the world’’.
Beer in both cities is served in tiny 200ml glasses with coasters marked for each poured glass. Only when the coaster is placed on top of a glass do the beers stop flowing (learn this lesson fast) and then you can take your coaster to pay for your drinks. Wunderbar!
But what would happen if I ordered an Altbier in Cologne?
‘‘’Don’t’’ advises our Cologne guide, before helpfully adding, ‘‘just don’t’’.
But seemingly it is OK to mention Cologne has a better football team, a top attraction, and a vibrant student scene, whereas a Dusseldorfer may boast their city doesn’t flood, their tallest tower is a few metres taller (scraping the barrel now), and is a more secular city (hint: they don’t have an imposing cathedral).
And if you want to take the rivalry to all new levels, you don’t even have to leave Dusseldorf to see Cologne, as you can glimpse the city and its famous cathedral from the 240m high Rhine Tower. Unless it’s cloudy, that is.
While much of Dusseldorf is postcard pretty, the city doesn’t have the knockout attraction that Cologne has; the 157m tall Cologne Cathedral. Construction of the imposing cathedral started in 1248, and was finished in 1880.
Like much of the city it was bombed during World War II but remained largely intact. The Unesco World Heritage site remains one of Germany’s most visited attractions, with some 20,000 people a day who, like me, try to work out how to take a photo without including the scaffolding covering parts of the cathedral.
But while Cologne has its cathedral, Dusseldorf has money. The younger, smaller upstart is just 40 kilometres away – a mere high-speed jaunt via the country’s famed autobahn, or in two hours you could be in Amsterdam or Brussels.
And if the autobahn is a German word you recognise, you may just have a Dusseldorf band to thank. Pioneering electronic band Kraftwerk released a 1974 album called Autobahn, with the catchy vocal refrain, ‘‘Wir fahr’n fahr’n fahr’n auf der Autobahn’’.
I’m thinking of that track when I land in Germany on the inaugural Singapore Airlines flight between Singapore and Dusseldorf.
But no serious looking electronic artists here, instead the airport is full of seriously good-looking staff who probably list ‘‘part-time model’’ on their Twitter bios.
The Dusseldorf airport is now the third busiest in Germany after Frankfurt and Munich, and has some 18 million people living within 100 kilometres, including those pesky people from Cologne.
Some of the international visitors flying into the city are the mega wealthy, perhaps attracted by one of the most famous shopping streets of Germany, the Konigsallee, or maybe the chance to hire a Porsche, Mercedes, or Audi for a flying visit along the autobahn.
The attraction of wealth, and the wealth of attraction can be shown in a local tale of a visiting studentturned supermodel who got ‘‘discovered’’ in a Dusseldorf nightclub, her name: Claudia Schiffer.
This week, Prince William, the Duchess of Cambridge, and their two children visited the city to mark 70 years of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
And there is one hotel in the city that is fit for any member of the Royal Family to stay in.
In the heart of Dusseldorf’s posh shopping area is the splendidly named Breidenbacher Hof, which has hosted George Clooney, Winston Churchill, and the Rolling Stones, and even has an interesting New Zealand connection.
The Capella Hotel chain has just 10 hotels and resorts on its books, including three luxury lodges in New Zealand; The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, and Matakauri Lodge.
A fleet of luxury cars, some for high-profile guests including Deep Purple and famed German rockstar Udo Lindenberg, are lined up at the front of the hotel.
But I walk past the smiling doormen, the ageing rockers, the passing women walking the smallest of dogs, and take an underground train to somewhere not in the glossy tourist brochures.
In Cologne it could take seconds to find a bit of grunge, but in Dusseldorf you have to look for it.
So here I am at Kiefernstrasse, a former notorious squat that may be the biggest graffiti wall in the world.
Homes on the odd-numbered side of the street are covered in street style art; bugs, cartoon characters, and other popular culture reference points. There is even graffiti written in a neat font saying ‘‘Sex, drugs, anarchie (sic) is all we need in Germany’’, which seemed to be very un-Dusseldorf.
Litter, graffiti, beggars, and a visible police presence are difficult to find in the city. But all of those are found in the first few minutes of Cologne, alongside punks, goths, and wall-to-wall tourists.
This is indeed a tale of two cities.
And while Dusseldorf may be wealthier and prettier, and Cologne more working class, and vibrant; both are worth visiting.
Just make sure you order the right beer.
The writer was travelled courtesy of Singapore Airlines.