Along the Rhine, Old Europe's New Vibe

Music to the Ears

The next afternoon, with sunny skies and 60-degree breezes, was just right for a Rhine cruise, so I stepped aboard the Koln-Dusseldorfer for the hour-long journey south to Bonn. As the ferry pulled away, the full range of Rhineland's attractions, both natural and man-made, became more apparent. Lush meadows gave way to inviting towns. A castle stood grandly on a wooded hillside. Flower gardens surrounded small houses set back a short way from the banks.

On the open water, I could also see why the Rhine is one of Europe's busiest rivers. As barges chugged along in one direction, carrying lumber and other goods, passenger boats passed going the other way, including some larger enclosed vessels that travel nearly the river's full 820-mile course. Compared with the Seine or the Danube, which mostly carry travelers on leisure trips, this is a working river.

Either way, it didn't matter. The pleasant autumn breeze, the wine and cheese provided onboard and the piped-in Mozart made me wish the ride could go on for days.

But then I would have missed my stop in Bonn. The city, which served as Germany's capital from 1949 to 1990, is today a picture of low-rise baroque charm. I strolled down Poppelsdorfer Allee, lined with stately art-nouveau homes and gas lamps, before making my way to the mint-green lawns and grand classroom buildings of the University of Bonn. Nearby, pastel houses dominate the city center's pedestrian zone; formerly merchant houses, they've been converted into beer halls and restaurants. I paused before the Easter-yellow central post office building to admire a towering bronze statue of Ludwig van Beethoven.

That set the stage for my tour of the small four-story house at Bonngasse 20, where Beethoven was born in 1770. The building is now Beethoven Haus, a museum dedicated to the composer. The walls are plastered with Beethoven portraits, including several of him performing, one as a young man with his family and another a well-known 1819 portrait by Joseph Karl Stieler. Also displayed are musical scores he authored, a viola, the last grand piano he used and several locks of his famously curly hair.

Recordings of some of his works can be heard through headphones the museum provides. I closed my eyes and let his melodious "Six Variations on a Swiss Song" take me back to Old Europe.

After my return journey up the Rhine, I was joined in Cologne by Michel, an old friend from my earlier visits to the city, for dinner. We scoped out the eclectic mix of cafes, clubs and restaurants near Rudolfplaltz and settled on Fischermanns', a small bistro in an art deco mansion off a tree-covered square. The tables were elegant, with white tablecloths and candles, and the crowd mostly young, stylish Germans.

The menu at first seemed like an odd experiment in fusion: duck breast on a bed of sauerkraut; gnocchi in walnut cream sauce; strawberry-infused tiramisu. We went along, ordering a bit of everything, and were not the least bit disappointed.

Joop! and More

Dusseldorf is only 19 miles from Cologne, but the posher, more refined scene seemed a world apart. After an hour's ride on a packed commuter train, I was strutting along Konigsallee, the city's showcase shopping boulevard.

Although the population is only 563,000, this street clearly has the ambitions of a bigger city. High-rise bank and financial buildings line one side, while towering chestnuts, smart boutiques and cafes border the other. In the middle is a canal filled with ducks and other waterfowl. A stream of locals, decked out in fur-trimmed jackets and stylish leather pants, paraded along the boulevard.

I'd come expecting to get a glimpse of fashion waves rolling in from the far-flung corners of the Continent. And Ko, as Rhinelanders know the street and the surrounding area, did not let me down. I popped into Jil Sander's boutique for a look at the German designer's spring offerings, geared mostly to young professional women with deep pockets: $2,000 cashmere sweaters, $700 basic long skirts, sleekly cut $1,000 leather jackets. A few blocks down, the shirts in the Kenzo boutique with their leopard-skin designs and open necks were equally pricey, but more imaginative.

For less expensive brands, I scoured the shops in the Schadow Arcade, an indoor U.S.-style mall with a Parisian buzz. The stores showcased low-cut Dolce & Gabbana jeans, bright sneakers and colorful pumps from Joop!, pinstriped suits from Armani and other garb from the new collections.