Cologne’s Südstadt district: a condensed version of the city

Being in the Südstadt district sometimes feels like you’re in Paris. It’s partly to do with the architecture – magnificent neogothic houses and brick facades covered in sprawling vines – and partly the nonchalance displayed by the locals. It’s not uncommon to find them drinking red wine at cloth-clad picnic tables in one of the neighbourhood’s parks. Südstadt has always had a bohemian appeal – and it shows! But it’s as typically Cologne as you can get too, which means it’s also a hub of the city’s karneval festivities. One of the karneval maxims is “live and let live” and it certainly seems feasible that this easy-going motto was invented in this part of town. Most people you bump into here appear to have internalised the idea a long time ago.

Chlodwigplatz: the five-pronged “star” of Südstadt

A good place to start is Chlodwigplatz square, from which five streets radiate. Severinstraße begins just behind the imposing Severinstorburg gate, one of Cologne’s oldest. Lined with general and specialist stores, boutiques and second-hand shops, restaurants and pubs, the street leads all the way to the city’s Altstadt neighbourhood. Or you could amble down Merowingerstraße and admire the colourful shop windows – like the one at Frau Schmitt, where you’ll find regional and ethical design items. Or try a cinnamon bun at Café Rotkehlchen – a 100% vegan eatery that just happens to be located in a former butcher’s shop.

From the Bananenrepublik to Eierplätzchen square

Or you could follow Bonner Straße for a while. Not only does that mean you get to treat yourself to a coffee at Café Einspänner, a small espresso bar with large windows and superb sweets, but it’s also a quick route to “Bananenrepublik Köln” – literally, “Cologne’s banana republic”. This roundabout is famous inside and outside the city thanks to local residents who planted banana trees, palms and wild flowers on its central island. It’s also the perfect reference point to make sure you don’t miss another Südstadt sight: Teutoburger Straße. This street still has most of the buildings that were erected here in the late 19th century (a period known as the Gründerzeit), which is rare as the city was severely damaged in the war. You can marvel at the majestic buildings to your left and right from the street’s central pedestrian avenue, undisturbed by cars. It takes you straight to Eierplätzchen, a small, oval “square”, with trees and benches around its edges. This is a meeting place for a whole array of people from the neighbourhood. They gather here to chat and often to play music together. In fact, a band was born on this very square. It’s name? You guessed it – Eierplätzchenband!

One of the city’s loveliest parks: Friedenspark

From here, you can see Römerpark Cafehaus, which serves extremely good cake in a nostalgic interior with marble tables and grand chandeliers. It’s also just a few steps away from the park that gave it its name, Römerpark. This modest park was severely damaged during the Second World War but a few of its mighty old trees and structural features – such as neo-baroque balustrades and a stone pavilion – did survive. Römerpark is right next to Friedenspark, one of Cologne’s loveliest parks and one that’s not very well-known. It was created at the beginning of the 20th century around an old fort, on top of which a green-greyish eagle remains perched today. The park has fallen off people’s radar in recent years, so sometimes you have it all to yourself. It has an enchanted ambience all year round and an arbour, dubbed the Liebesallee (or “avenue of love”), which leads from precisely positioned plane trees to a monument honouring John Lennon’s peace anthem, Imagine, and an evergreen garden with secluded seating areas.

Onwards to Ubierring and indie books, neon signs and flat whites

As we make our way back, it’s worth dropping into Der andere Buchladen, housed in a heritage corner building with large windows that draw you in. The perfect place if you like losing yourself in good, non-mainstream literature, often from small indie publishers, whilst also supporting an independent bookstore. On the opposite side of the road, admittedly several traffic lanes and a tram track away, sits offbeat Leo Leo Vintage furniture store. Their product range includes old neon letter signs, design items from decades past and vintage sunglasses. If all that walking around has left you feeling peckish, pop into the hip cosiness of Café Walter for a flat white and a generously filled sandwich.

And the grand finale (as always) – the Rhine!

Back at the Ubierring tram stop, where you have a wonderful view of the impressive building that used to be the Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum, you can already smell the Rhine – well, in the warm months at least. The old harbour has been redeveloped into a residential and business district and now houses restaurants, offices, flats, art and culture in buildings from the past and the present. In the summer, there are open-air events like film-showings or readings. But you can also just stroll along the promenade with its protected-status harbour cranes, take in the view of the river and its majestic bridges and enjoy, just for a moment, the sensation of feeling as if you were standing on the banks of the Seine.