Europe Day 5: Cologne to Maastricht via Aachen (Thursday July 10)

Today we traveled by rail from Cologne to Aachen, then a short ride by taxi to our hotel in Vaals, and then an exploratory excursion by taxi to Maastricht and back.  Our hotel in Vaals is the best so far, but it is a 30 minute taxi ride into Maastricht.  The drive to Maastricht is through lots of open and hilly countryside; quite picturesque and not unlike some of the beautiful countryside you might see in rural Pennsylvania.  Maastricht is a beautiful old European city, unspoiled by WWII.  You could stroll for hours through narrow cobblestone streets lined with high end shops and more restaurants than you can count.  The restaurants surrounding tomorrow night's concert site were packed.  Tonight you could get a seat, but tomorrow night was booked months ago.  They recommend reservations now for next year's Andre Rieu concert.   There are huge monitors set up for even the restaurant crowd.

Our hotel and view off our balcony in Vaals.

Picture greeting you in the men's room.

Another day, another beer.

The Dutch like their bicycles!

Maastricht streets and sights.