Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow
As you may recall from some of my previous blogs, the weather here in Cologne is very strange. One minute it will be cloudy and mild and the next minute you'll find yourself in freezing cold downpour of rain. It will rain so hard that the drops hitting your face feel like pebbles falling from the sky. Then the rain will stop, the clouds will disappear, and the sun will shine. And then a half an hour later, it will start raining all over again.
Rainy weather is something that we have just gotten used to living here. An umbrella has become a new appendage for me as I rarely go anywhere without one. Neither does anyone else. It is just common knowledge that if you live in Cologne you can almost always expect to get wet! The only exception to this rule are the months of December and January when it is too cold to rain. But surprisingly enough, it doesn't snow then either. Because in Cologne...it NEVER snows. Or so we have been told!
Well, yesterday I went out on our terrace to have a cup of coffee and when I walked outside, I saw huge flakes of snow falling from the sky. Trees were covered in a canvas of snow and I couldn't believe my eyes! I felt this huge sense of exhilaration and if you didn't know any better, you would have thought I had never seen snow before! As I sat that there drinking my coffee, I began to wonder...if I'm this excited about seeing it snow and I see it every winter back home, I wonder how people who rarely see snow here must be reacting?
Never one to miss a photo opportunity, I quick grabbed my camera and my coat, and headed straight to the park at the end of our street. As I was walking down the sidewalk, I passed several people along the way. Considering the fact that it was 7:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning, it was very strange to see so many people already out and about. What I found even more peculiar was the fact that no one seemed to be going anywhere...they were all just standing around and staring. Staring at the sky watching the snow fall, staring at the snow that just fell on the ground, and staring at me because I was taking pictures of all of them staring!
The few people in the neighborhood that were walking around didn't seem to be moving very fast. With frightened looks upon their faces, they made their way down the sidewalk at a turtle's pace. Meanwhile, I raced by them gingerly taking pictures along the way. Everyone I passed by looked at me in shock and a few of them muttered some things to me in German from which I could gather meant, "You must be crazy!" They couldn't believe I was walking so fast in a "blizzard". Funny thing was...there was maybe a ¼ of an inch of snow on the ground at most!
When I finally reached the park, it was absolutely beautiful. It was literally a Winter Wonderland. Huge snowflakes covered the branches on all of the trees and the ground was hidden beneath a crisp white blanket of snow. The snowflakes themselves were even amazing, as they were some of the biggest I have ever seen. But what made the scenery the most captivating to me were the people. There were people everywhere.
As I made my way through the park, I watch little kids scooping up snow as if they had never seen it before. Parents were laughing and smiling as they watched their children playing in the snow. Strangers were stopping to talk to each other and one person even stopped to say hi to me (which is a rare occurrence since people are not usually that friendly here). On one particular occasion, an exuberant woman came up to me waiving her arms up and down in excitement. She said something to me in German and when I said, "No Sprechen Sie Deutsch" she smiled and replied, "Snow...Look, Snow!" I was completely amazed. All of this celebration over a few flakes of snow.
Continuing my hike along the trails through the woods, I saw several people walking their dogs. This was quite an entertaining experience as most of the dogs looked rather confused. I don't think they had a clue as to what was going on and probably couldn't understand why their owners were so excited about seeing white things falling from the sky. Other dogs didn't seem to care as they chased each other around in the snow like little kids on a playground.
After an hour or so, the pretty snowflakes turned into sleet and all of the snow on the trees disappeared. The blankets of snow on the ground vanished and so did all of the people in the park. It was as if nothing special had ever happened. It was a typical rainy morning in Cologne. By the time I got back to our apartment, I was the only one walking outside. The snow had melted, the streets were empty, and the sidewalks were clear. The excitement was over.
Aside from how beautiful it was in the park, seeing people's reaction to snow is what made this experience so captivating to me. Back home you never see people get excited about snow. Why would they when it snows everyday for four months? But here it was different because for one hour, I had the chance to be a part of something really big...something that supposedly NEVER happens here. And I am really grateful for that. As I joined my fellow Germans in the park to watch the huge snowflakes fall, I found myself saying what I never thought I would say, "Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!"
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